Boku no Hero Academia Märchen: Once Upon a Time
by LeoNsaver
Summary: Words are windows to other worlds, and books are locked doorways waiting to be opened. When Mirio decided to get Eri a book of innocent collection of fairy tales as a birthday gift, a new malevolent force shall be unleashed upon Musutafu. Now Deku and his friends must protect their classmates from a mysterious team of villains! PLUS ULTRA!
1. Chapter 1: Emergence of a new Evil

Words are windows to other worlds, and books are locked doorways waiting to be opened. When Mirio decided to get Eri a book of innocent collection of fairy tales as a birthday gift, a new malevolent force shall be unleashed upon Musutafu City. Not only must Deku and his friends protect the ones closest to them from a new team of villains, but they must also the unravel the mystery of their appearance. PLUS ULTRA!

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**Chapter 1: Emergence of a New Evil**

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"Just how long is this going to take Nejire? We're not supposed to be out here even if we have a break period."

"Come on Tamaki, it feels fun to break the rules once in a while. We're enjoying the last part of our UA journey as third-years!"

"I don't think that's what a third-year student should be saying…"

"Guys please be a little quieter…we are going to disturb the other customers."

"But there's no one else here...I'm surprised you managed to find such an old place Mirio."

Mirio Togata sighed as he watched his school friends Tamaki Amajiki and Nejire Hado bicker lightly as he browsed through the hundreds of old books on the shelves in the building the big three were in; a tall work of architecture which looked like something out of the Victorian age in the past. In contrast to the white concrete structures which the street was filled with, the red bricks and old-fashioned doors made the building stand out from the rest. They were currently in Musutafu's Alexandria Library, the oldest library in Japan.

"Sorry for dragging you guys in this today, this is something I'm bad with." Mirio sheepishly apologized as he glanced at the thousands and thousands of books stacked in neat rows, all orderly arranged and placed carefully like a well-crafted Jenga tower. Each stack towered to the ceiling, and even more covering every corner of slightly dusty old shelves. How anyone could ever take a book from that height, the boy did not know. The sole help desk stood by the front door, and dozing off on it was an old man with his long silver hair tied into a neat ponytail, and his steel-rimmed glasses perched precariously on his pointed nose, snoring away on a stack of books acting as a makeshift pillow.

"No problem, no problem!" Nejire waved cheerfully back at her classmate. "It's really nice of you to buy a present for dear Eri, and I really wanted a reason to see her back at the class 1-A dorms again."

"And you're currently on a temporary leave of absence, but we have classes…" Tamaki sighed as he looked down on his wristwatch, taking note of the time. "we have 30 minutes left till economics Nejire."

"That's plenty of time!" the blue-haired [motion-wave] quirk user exclaimed happily. "Let's look around and search Tamaki!"

"Plenty of time for what?" Tamaki asked tiredly while wiping the sweat off his brow. This old library is in serious need of some air-conditioning. He started to look through the old, nondescript books, but the faded-out labels on the shelves proved to be no help at all. "Seriously… why can't they at least put labels? What exactly are we looking for Mirio?"

"Eri's birthday is coming, and I really want to get something for her to read when she's bored. She's been asking about books to read for a while, and I really hope I can get something that she'll…ah that's it!" Mirio answered back, his huge eyes twinkled with excitement as his finger scrolled through the worn and aged spines of books infront of him. It stopped at a particularly large volume with faded text, and he immediately pulled it out from its resting place. "Let's see…" He muttered as he grasped the book and flipped through the pages, a large grin slowly forming on Mirio's features.

"You found something?" Nejire asked.

"This is it! A book of fairy tales!" Mirio said in his own excited voice. "I really wanted to get a book of stories for Eri to read…but never have I seen such a wide assortment of classic tales in one book. Reading some of them really brings back some memories."

"Why not just buy a better one at the nearest bookstore?" Tamaki inquired as he dusted off the layer of dirt from the book cover, the musty smell making the [Manifest] quirk user's nose wrinkle. "Why come all this way here to get an extremely worn-out book of fairy tales?"

"Can you blame me for wanting to get a cheap version of it?" The former [Permeation] quirk user pouted towards his childhood friend. "Besides…the books in the normal stores can't match a classic such as this. The illustrations look hand-drawn as well, Eri will definitely love this!"

"You could be right young man," said a voice behind them, and the three students turned to see that the elderly library clerk had woken up, a bubble bursting as the old man adjusted his tie and sat upright on his chair. "That book is one of a kind, said to be one of the first fairy tale manuscripts to be created and sold. The man who donated that book to us was kind enough to write the Japanese translation alongside the original text, so I'm sure anyone would enjoy it."

"Wow! That's so nice of him; he really must loved the stories so much if he's willing to translate the entire book for us to understand it."

"I'm glad you think so," The elderly librarian smiled like a proud father towards Nejire. "I'm sure that man will be grateful."

Mirio closed the hard-cover book and gazed at the yellowed index page, some of the words were smudged but readable nevertheless, but what caught his eye was the painting depicted on the back of the front cover; an illustration telling five different stories: the first was a poor maiden standing before a prince holding a glass slipper; the second painted a man rubbing a lamp and summoning a genie; the third showed a beautiful princess laying on a bed of thorns and roses; the fourth illustration depicted a lone Greek warrior facing a large man wreathed in flames, and lastly…was a young girl facing a scary humanoid beast with a rose in its hand.

"So…what stories are in the book, Mirio?" Tamaki asked, pulling his friend out of his thoughts. Mirio smiled back and showed Nejire and Tamaki the illustration beside the index page, allowing them to see the five main stories in the book.

"Ooo…is there the one where the prince transformed into a frog? That's so cute!" Hado asked excitedly while hopping like a small kid.

"Hold up Nejire, the first story is about a servant girl," Mirio listed off as he cross reference with the first story after the index page, "who is abused by wicked stepmother and sisters as a mere maid. She secretly goes to a ball to meet a prince with the help of her fairy godmother and animal friends."

"I've heard about that one," Tamaki commented. "The princess with the glass slippers, right?"

"Why glass slippers though?" Nejire wondered aloud with a hand on her chin, deep in thought. "Why not tempered glass? Will she have sore feet wearing such a brittle material? Tamaki, Mirio, do you know?"

"It's just a fairy tale Nejire…let's try not to think too much into it." Tamaki sweatdropped.

Mirio turned to the next chapter. "The second is about a street rat who wants to meet the princess of the kingdom. For that, he finds a lamp with a genie who grants him three wishes…the third story's a little interesting, it's made up of two parts. In both of them the princess gets put under a sleeping curse and the prince has to wake them up with true love's kiss."

"What's the difference in the two stories for the third chapter?" Nejire inquired.

Mirio read the two stories a little more carefully before telling his friend. "It looks like the first one is about a princess who runs away to live with seven dwarfs from the jealous queen to avoid being killed. But she gets tricked into a deep sleep by eating a poisoned apple. The second one on the other hand…the princess is cursed to a similarly deep sleep by pricking her finger on the needle of a spinning wheel, by an evil and powerful enchantress."

"How does that work though? Being put to sleep by apples and needles, while being woken up from a kiss?" Nejire asked innocently, tilting her head sideways. "Tamaki?"

"Don't ask me, I'm bad with this sort of thing." The [manifest] quirk user answered back quickly with a slightly blushing face, the terms of love and kisses making the reserved boy slightly uncomfortable. "As I have told you earlier, it's just a fairy tale, so anything goes I guess."

Tamaki looked back at Mirio again. "Is that all the chapters?"

"There's just two more," Mirio replied, his fingers turning the pages to the last two main stories of the old book. "The fourth story is regarding a demigod who must prove himself as a hero in order to reclaim his godhood by facing the god of death. And the fifth and final story…a young village girl who was imprisoned by a terrible beast in exchange for her father's freedom; a beast who can only turn back to a human should a girl fall in love with his bestial form." Mirio smiled at all the wonderful and heart-warming stories ready to be read upon, he turned towards his two friends and asked, "You guys think Eri would love this book? This will be the first time she's celebrating her birthday and I really want to get something meaningful for her."

"I wonder…" Tamaki scratched his head and browsed through the book himself. "You know Eri the best, and she spends a lot of her time with you…so I think that she would be happy with anything you get for her. But I have to say that a fairy tale book is quite old-fashioned."

"Oh, what's the harm?" Nejire rebutted, prying the book away from Tamaki's hands and holding it above her like some precious treasure with her eyes dazzling with excitement. "I remember when my mom used to read to me some of the fairy tales…it's a great part of my childhood. Eri hasn't got an adequate past thanks to the Yakuza she used to be in…so it's important for her to be exposed to the joy of stories! All she needs is someone to read it to her."

"I can do it," Mirio beamed. "And I'm sure the students of class 1-A would be happy to read some of the stories to her as well…and that's why," Mirio took the book and walked over to the clerk's helpdesk. "I'm going to buy this for her. I'm sure she'll love it!"

"Buy it?" Tamaki raised an eyebrow. "This is a library Mirio…you can't just-"

"Actually you can," The old librarian spoke out from behind them and gave a warm smile. "This building is very old, and the library is on the verge of closing down to make way for another store. That is why I am constantly searching for ways to distribute the books." The elderly man explained to Mirio, Nejire and Tamaki. "If you promise to treat it with care, the book is free of charge."

"Free of charge!?" Tamaki gasped.

"That's amazing!" Nejire grabbed the book with shining eyes. "You're the best old man!"

And so, after having the book nicely wrapped and packed, the Big Three of Yuuei left the library left for the school with happy expressions. Mirio himself couldn't help but hum a cheery tune as he thought about how the little girl he and Midoriya rescued would react to a huge bundle of classic and innocent tales of love and adventure. So much that he, Nejire and Tamaki couldn't see the strange look the elderly librarian was giving them as he watched the trio left his establishment. Only later would the hero students learn that it was the start of something sinister. They did not know that the old book being held by them not only had the power to send the heroes into a havoc, but also destroy the Musutafu City they loved.

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A book of fairy tales, what could possibly go wrong…or so they thought.

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**Now then…shall we begin the storytelling?**


	2. Chapter 2: An Arabian Night in Yuuei

**Chapter 2: An Arabian Night in Yuuei**

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"Happy birthday Eri!" The entire class of 2-A cheered to the six-year old girl who was gingerly holding the hand of Midoriya Izuku. "Happy birthday to you! Happy birthday to you! Happy birthday to Eri…happy birthday to you!"

It has been months since Eri was rescued from the clutches of Kai Chisaki and the Eight Precepts of Death, and the little [Rewind] quirk girl had made herself at home in the UA school compound. Ever since she was welcomed into the UA family, she has been staying in a separate dorm by the staff office in block A. After a while, the question was raised regarding the place for her long term residence; there was no way the school would allow her to keep living in an isolated living quarter forever. After a lot of discussion among the teachers and offers made by the class 2-A heroes, Headmaster Nezu has given permission for the girl to have a room in the 2-A dorms, upon observing how calm and happy she was when she's around Midoriya and his fellow classmates. It was then he decided that along with her usual guardians Aizawa and Mirio, Midoriya was to be responsible as Eri's parental figure.

The entire class was overjoyed upon hearing this decision, and furthermore Nezu had pointed out that it was going to be her birthday soon! And so they made a special arrangement to celebrate her birthday the exact date she was planned to move into the dorms.

Eri looked up at the class 2-A dorms and was immediately overwhelmed by the sheer size of the living space. The building was five stories tall and had a variety of facilities she has never seen before, along with colourful decorations in the lobby placed for this special occasion. In the middle of the room was a gigantic two-tier cake displayed proudly in the shape of a pink castle; Sato Rikidou went all out that night and he smiled with joy as soon as he saw how amazed Eri was with his masterpiece. Around the cake stood all the students of 2-A; some Eri had recognized through her previous visits to the dorms, while others she had not seen before. All of them (save for Bakugo who was standing by the side watching the entire thing with a neutral expression), had presents in their hands and waited for the birthday girl.

Upon seeing so many unknown faces, Eri buried her face into Midoriya's trousers and partially hid from view, clearly embarrassed. Seeing this, all the students were flustered and Izuku hurriedly patted Eri while laughing, telling her that they are all her friends. This cute reaction caused all the girls to crowd around Eri to welcome their new dormmate.

"SHE IS JUST SO CUTE!" a girl with pink hair and pink skin bend a little to Eri's height and hugged her like a teddy bear with a huge smile on her face. However, this sudden move caused Eri to shy away and buried her face deeper behind Midoriya.

"Ashido san, don't do that so suddenly!" Yaoyorozu chided the surprised [Acid] quirk girl. "You're going to scare the poor girl!"

"It's alright Eri! We're all friends here! You remember me, don't you?" Eri loosened her grip a little when she heard the familiar voice, the friendly and warm sound breaking her nervousness. She peeked from behind Midoriya to see a girl with short brown hair and rosy cheeks, smiling reassuringly towards her, waving her hand in greeting. "We are all here to celebrate your birthday afterall!" Eri's face lit up considerably as soon as she saw the brunette. She was the girl who help Midoriya defeat Kai Chisaki and rescued her.

"Ms Uraraka." Eri slowly peeked out from behind Izuku and politely bowed her head.

Most of the students felt their hearts skip a beat at this cute action. She was just too adorable! Luckily this thought was squealed out in the minds of all the girls, sparing the boys from having their ears bleed from high-pitched squeals.

"No fair!" Hagakure whined and waved her invisible arms in the air in envy. "I want to be on close terms with Eri as well! I want her to call me Ms Hagakure!"

"Now, now!" Yaoyorozu clapped her hands as she gestured towards the table full of treats and the wonderous cake awaiting the wowed birthday girl. "I say it's time for us to move on to the cake! After that, we'll commerce the present giving!"

"Shall we go then Eri?" Uraraka stood up and held her hand towards Eri. The girl gave a small excited nod. That was all the response they needed to escort the girl and cheer for the newest addition to their 2-A dorm.

**=[]=**

**Later that night, after the party:**

"Alright Eri," Izuku rustled the head of the one-horned girl as he tucked her in. "I'll see you tomorrow alright? Good night."

"Um…Mr Deku…" Eri twiddled her fingers nervously as she glanced at the clock. Even though it was already late, Eri was still feeling rather energetic thanks to the party the students just threw for her. The rest of the class had offered to deal with the after-party mess while Midoriya showed Eri her new living quarters. Izuka had helped to transferred all her presents to the spare room beside Uraraka's while the little girl yawned a little and hugged her pillow. "Could you read me a bedtime story?"

"Haha sure, why not? I'll love to! I'm sure that Mirio senpai gave you a storybook somewhere…ah here it is!" said Izuku as he reached to where the book was placed and held it in front of Eri, allowing her girl to admire the intricate designs on the book's hard cover. "Anything for the birthday girl!"

"Thank you, Mr Deku!" Eri answered with joy.

"Alrighty then, what story shall we read today…?" Midoriya stood up and shifted the pile of presents deposited next to Eri's bedframe, giving himself some space to seat right next to the girl's side. "Let's see here…"

Midoriya began to turn the yellowed and faded pages of the book, letting the mild smell of old paper permeate the air. As Eri was deep in thought, her eyes flickering with excitement while Izuku flipped through the pages randomly till he stopped somewhere where the title of a tale was printed boldly. Eri had no idea what she was about to trigger, and her finger decisively pointed to the very page Midoriya had decided to flip after just opening the book, and declared innocently. "I want to hear this story. Is that okay, Mr Deku?"

"She just chose the very first story I flipped to without looking at the list…" The [One for All] successor chuckled to himself, happy at how excited the little girl was at bedtime stories. "Looks like the story you choose is Aladdin and the Magic Lamp. Oh, I've heard about this tale when I was little as well!"

"Aladdin?" Eri echoed curiously while tilting her head slightly, this being the first she heard about fairy tales. "Is he from Japan?"

"No, the man known as Aladdin came from Agrabah, a thriving city by the Jordan River and ruled under the great Sultan…" Izuku smiled as he sat close to Eri and showed the illustrations drawn by the text's side. "Once upon a time in a distant land, flourished the great city of Agrabah. Peaceful and prosperous, the country was ruled by the beloved Sultan. And in this Agrabah, there lived a street rat named Aladdin. His tale begins with a dark night…"

Eri had the time of her life as Izuku described the story of how Aladdin obtained the magic lamp with an all-powerful genie living within it. The most enjoyable part to Eri was how he managed to marry the princess at the end, and the little girl was so hyped that she almost couldn't sleep, which made things a little hard for Izuku. But neither him nor Eri knew the danger they have let loose upon reading that particular story.

That night while Eri slept early, the book placed on the table beside her began to shake slightly as the lettering of the book's title began to glow for an instance. Then, a small trail of smoke escaped its closed pages and snaked out of Eri's window into the sky.

A dark mocking laugh cackled alongside the rumbling thunder, for it's the beginning of a new horror.

**=[]=**

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"Whoa, what's with the temper Jirou?"

"That stupid, idiotic bakaminari…!" Jirou hissed out as she massaged her temples while her cheeks spotted a bright hue of red. "Even if what he said was a joke, he really crossed the line this time…!"

"Kaminari?" Ashido scooted over to her friend for what may be an interesting gossip topic for her. "Did something happen just now?" Even though she asked that, the look on the [Earphone Jack] quirk user's face was enough to inform Ashido roughly about what Kaminari may have said to her just now. "Does it have to do with how he wanted to talk to you alone outside the dorms right in the middle of Eri's birthday party?"

"Will someone be kind enough as to explain why she's mad at a six-year old's birthday party?" Hagakure asked with a sigh.

"She and Jamming Whey weren't at the later half of the party," Ashido explained. "I saw them went outside after Kaminari told her he wanted to ask her something. Seeing how much she's blushing and fuming mad; I'm guessing he must have said something pretty big to make the usually cool Jirou so spitting mad. So…wanna tell us what happened earlier?"

"It's fine. I just need some time to cool down…"

"It's good to share-"

"I said it's fine," Jirou assured as she made her way to the dorm's entrance, the figure of Kaminari seating across the room with the boy's group momentarily came into her view.

It might have been a coincidence, but his eyes meet hers briefly and he stood up to scoot over. "H-Hey Jirou, about just now-"

"Sorry Kaminari," Jirou refused to meet his eyes as she walked out of the dorms quickly with her face lowered, taking her jacket along. "I need some time to think alone."

"Wait! I-!"

"Don't bother Kaminari, she's already gone," Sero looked over to Kaminari with a huge smug on his face. Along with Ojirou, Shoji, and Kirishima, the four boys have gathered around Kaminari after it became apparent that something was going on between him and Jirou. The rest of the class are helping to clear the leftovers from Eri's birthday party. "It seems like somebody wouldn't stop staring at Jirou today, huh Kaminari?"

Kaminari should have expected this. After Shouji and Jirou, Sero was probably the most observant kid in class. "Just what in the world happened between you two just now? Did you say something rude to her?"

"Not exactly…"

"Well…whatever the case was, it should be fine as long as you apologise properly and tell her you didn't mean it." Shoji lectured through one of his easily formed mouths on his limbs. "Seeing how you two get along in the past year, this should be nothing to be worried about."

"Yeah. This is the first time I've seen her so mad. At most, she'll just jab you with her earphone jacks and get it over with. You must have said something incredibly stupid." Kirishima questioned.

"There's nothing wrong with what I said…I just told her my true and honest feelings that's all." Kaminari shyly said.

Sero and Kirishima quickly glanced at each other before staring back at Kaminari with great surprise.

"Oi oi Kaminari…" Sero sweated a little as what Kaminari admitted just now finally clicked in his mind. "Don't tell me you and Jirou are…"

"Guys, I'm being serious here…I want to take a chance," Kaminari paused to look at the door where Jirou stomped out from before continuing. "And confess?" he spat out.

"Okay Kaminari…are you seriously telling us that you confessed to Jirou just now?" Kirishima asked with an incredulous expression plastered on his face. "Dude, I've heard your stories about how many girls you crush on before you even got into UA; none of them worked out. So, you're telling me that even Jirou is one of your targets now?"

"My feelings are genuine!" Kaminari exclaimed indignantly with tears in his eyes. "I mean I put my heart and soul into my words just now! Is it wrong for me to express my inner most feelings!?"

"Well considering that everyone knows you're somewhat of a flirt who approaches any girl you chance upon, I think Jirou has a valid reason to think that you're just messing with her." Ojirou tried explaining his hypothesis as nicely as possible. "Does she have any feelings towards you? Since when did you start considering going out with her?"

"Well, she told me many times that I'm a fun guy to hang around with."

"That's probably because you always do or say stupid things to make her laugh." Kirishima reasoned to Kaminari with a deadpanned stare. The red had had little experience when it comes to love, but he's sensible enough to know that it's not polite to confess to someone with half-hearted feelings. "You sure you want to go through with this?"

"I'm certain I'm telling you!" Kaminari declared as he grabbed on to Kirishima's shoulders. "But the problem is that she thinks I'm just messing with her!"

"Maybe you have to say it in such a way that she won't misunderstand you…Oi Bakugo!" Sero called out to the [Explosion] quirk user. "Got any good advice for the lover boy here?"

"Don't try to get me involved in this shit I'm warning you!" Bakugo barked out. "I can hear you extras talking about your love talk from here. We have a girl sleeping upstair so would it hurt to just quiet down and settle Chargedolt's love issues tomorrow!?"

"Wow, Bakugo's being considerate for once, even if he's the one shouting." Ashido whistled with awe as she came over to the boys' group to eavesdrop, despite Bakugo's evil stares on her for what she said just now. "But he's right; it's getting late and the midnight curfew gonna be soon. We better help Iida to clean this place up before Aizawa comes to check."

"I'm still a little worried for Jirou though," Kirishima told his horn buddy. "I say we bring her back; it's not safe for her to be wandering outside so late. Wanna come along Bakugo?"

"I'm out of this. You can deal with the issues of that lovestruck idiot this time Kirishima, I'm not going to go out just to convince Miss Ears that Chargedolt here has genuine feelings for her." Bakugo stated with his usual snarky comments.

"Suit yourself then, but that means you have to help clean up the mess while we go and get Jirou." Kirishima then turned to Kaminari. "How about you?"

"I don't think that's a good idea. At this point, seeing me may only make her even more angry than she is now."

"You're scared of the girl you have genuine feelings for?" Sero raised an eyebrow and snickered.

"Sure, be my guest and come along with me then Sero." Kaminari challenged sardonically. "I love to see you repeat those words after you get pierced by those jacks of hers. Don't come cursing to me when that happens."

Ashido, who saw how heated the argument was getting, quickly stepped in before a verbal war could break out. "Alright alright, drop it you guys…_sheesh_. Just give a girl some space, before you bring her back later." Ashido told them. "I'm sure she and Kaminari can sort their issues out by themselves."

Leaving Jirou alone would be the second greatest mistake the heroes have made that night.

**=[]=**

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"That kaminari…he must be going crazy. Why did he have to say that?"

Jirou absentmindedly kicked the pebbles under her feet as she walked further away from the 2-A dorms. She did not realize how much her cheeks heated up the more she thought about that cringe-worthy moment Kaminari had created when he called her out during Eri's birthday party.

"Jirou Kyouka, you are the girl I've always longed for? Yeah right…I'm not that easy to fool Jamming Whey."

As Jirou walked across the deserted walkways of the forest park located next to the UA school's PE grounds. Weird dancing shadows of trees swayed eerily under the moonlight as Jirou strolled on the forested path. As she walked, she could not help but think back to how she reacted when Kaminari confessed to her. That short-circuiting idiot just had to confess to her out of nowhere. If Kaminari thought he was being hilarious, he was dead wrong. Perhaps they had spent too much time together, the boy thought that a confession seemed like a harmless prank; there was certainly no way Kaminari could ever think of her that way – that was her thought. She was so engrossed in her thoughts that she was hardly paying any attention to her surroundings. She did notice just how far she had walked away from the warm lights of the UA campus, nor has she noticed a strange black smog snaking behind her, twisting its shape till it formed a gang of shadows.

It was only when Jirou felt a cold, pricking sensation on her neck, then she realized someone was aiming his malicious gaze at her. She spun around, distinctly seeing a group of rugged men, their shadows growing bigger on the trees as they crept up from behind Jirou.

"What is this!?" Jirou Kyouka shouted in alarm as she willed her two earphone jacks to rise around her like living snakes.

Jirou barely had time to adjust her eyes to the darkness before she saw several men lunging out from the shadows. She ducked to avoid their outstretched hands and ran towards the road where she entered from, but she skidded to a stop when a shadow bigger than the rest intercepted her path.

Jirou let out a painful cry as the man blocking her send her tumbling back to the ground with one powerful push. As he held her against the floor and prevented her from moving, Jirou's earphone jacks lashed out like living snakes and stabbed themselves right in the big man's nose. The man grunted in pain, but didn't loosen his hold and used his free hand to prevent Jirou's earphone jacks from moving.

By that time, the other mysterious people joined the first to help him and move Jirou. The large man had to yank Jirou to her feet and loosen his grip on her momentarily. When that happened, Jirou whipped her head back and felt the back of her skull connect with the other man's face. He genuinely roared out a shout of agony this time and released his hold on the punk girl, but the other men were ready to that as soon as she tried to bolt. With their combined might, they tackled Jirou to the ground, gagged her and carried the struggling Jirou to a deeper part of the forest.

"Hold on to those annoying earlobes of hers and stop them from moving." The biggest man of the group instructed the group with a nasally voice with one hand covering his nose, and Jirou could see a dark liquid steadily dripping down. Two attacks by Jirou had caused the man to bloody his nose. Good.

"The high vizier has instructed us to treat the princess with care." The man continued. "Don't injure her too much." The group then frog-marched her and headed deeper into the forested park, carrying Jirou in between them despite her twisting and attempts to escape from their grip, trying her best to at least make enough noise to attract the attention of anybody around. Who are these people? What did they want with her? Where are they taking her? She could only hope with all the shouting and noises made by her would be enough to alert someone. In her struggle, the phone sitting in her pocket slipped out and dropped onto the ground, but the captors were too busy moving Jirou to notice this.

The mysterious group of assailants carried her through the break in the trees, and Jirou stopped struggling to see a small clearing where all the paths intersected; the heart of the park. As she was shoved to her knees under the bright moonlight, she could now see who or what her captors were. They were a group of ten men, wearing garb resembling middle-eastern with parts of their attire covered with gold armour. They wore skullcaps with turbans wrapped around them and a single feather protruded from each of their head dresses, along with a curved blade known as a scimitar hanging by each of their sides. The biggest among them with dark, gaunt eyes looked at Jirou with angry eyes as he rubbed the part where Jirou hit him; his nose.

And then as though on cue, an unnaturally tall and lanky man emerged from the shadows. Unlike the group which captured Jirou, this individual walked with grace and elegance despite the long robes covering his feet.

Jirou's mouth fell open with shock as a tall, bony figure dressed in a strange, extravagant attire stepped into the moonlight. Grey eyelinder highlighted his dark, slanted eyes and the lower part of his face had a twisted black goatee as well as a faint moustache. He was dressed in black robes which reached the floor over a red garment with bell sleeves. He also sported a distinctive black mitre wrapped around his head fastened with a blood-red ruby with a red feather on top of it, with more black cloth hanging down to frame his thin and narrow face. The most prominent feature of this strange man was the golden ornate, cobra-head staff, and the thing's ruby eyes seemed to flicker with malice in night light. His lips curled into a mocking smirk as he gazed on Jirou.

Jirou forced herself to shake off her shock and fear and concentrate on her current situation as the man with the snake staff spoke. "Looks like our target sure is a feisty one, wouldn't you agree? Guard Captain Hakim?" His mildly amused gaze landed on the biggest man who held Jirou down on her knees, who was still a little winded from the [Earphone Jack] quirk girl's sound attack.

And perched on his shoulder was a…

"Awwck! Seriously, that's her!?" A scarlet macaw parrot raised an eyebrow at Jirou as it gave a squawk. "This is the princess we're looking for? A little too punkish don't you think Jafar? Awwck!"

"Calm yourself Iago; don't be too quick to judge." The oddly-dressed man curtly cut off his parrot's words as he examined Jirou from head to toe. As the man stepped forward, all the other soldiers who captured Jirou immediately kneeled down in respect for this new individual. "I believe even someone as bird-brained as you would be able to tell that this girl is exactly who we were looking for. She will do nicely."

A parrot!?

"What do you mean I'm the one you're looking for?! And what's with 'princess'?" Jirou demanded angrily, having an instant dislike for the sassy avian. "How did you guys get into the UA grounds? If you think I'm just going to let you take me, you're going to have another thing coming you hear me!? Let me go!"

"The girl's got spunk, I'll give her that! Awwck!" The parrot known as Iago commented while Jafar let a small laugh escape his lips, clearly amused by the [Earphone Jack] quirk girl's reactions. Rather than replying to her demands, the man raised the snake sceptre towards Jirou and the 'eyes' of the snake staff began to radiate a strange and mesmerizing red wave of energy. One of the soldiers also stepped forward to forcefully raise Jirou's head to have her stare into the staff, her own earphone jacks still being held tightly to prevent her from using her quirk. Jirou was feeling terror from the depths of her heart. She could feel her mind slowly slipping away and her conscious fading. The energy of her body was being drained and Jirou knew that once she blacked out it would be all over for her. For the first time in her life Jirou felt both helpless and terrified.

"Stop it! You can't do this!" Jirou screamed, doing all she can to escape against the soldiers' iron grip, her voice becoming louder in volume and pitch. "No! Someone help me! Please! KAMINARI-KUN!"

"JIROU!"

Jirou swung her head around. "Kaminari?" she gasped hopefully, but rather than the [Electrification] quirk boy, she spotted Bakugo, Kirishima and Sero bursting through the trees into the clearing. She saw that Kirishima had her phone in his hands while Bakugo was quickly scanning the scene and frowned at the sight of the weirdly-dressed and out-of-place group of villains who looked like they came out of a middle-eastern musical troupe.

"WHAT THE HELL!?"

"Jirou!" The trio of boys rushed forward, but the group of ten soldiers marched forward to block their path, all of them unsheathing their scimitars and forming a protective ring around Jafar and Jirou.

"Who's the ugly dude with the staff?" Kirishima asked aloud.

"That's ugly, Royal Vizier of Agrabath to you brats! Awwck!" Iago retorted back arrogantly. "Standing before you is the mighty…the fabulous…the dazzling Royal Vizier of Agrabah, JAAAAFAR! Let's hear some applause baby! Awwck!" The parrot then began to pluck out a couple of feathers from his wings and scattered them above his master like makeshift confetti. This would have looked a little comedic for the class 2-A heroes if it weren't for the fact that the villains were holding their classmate hostage.

Jafar gave a sick twisted smile as he took notice of them, which made both Kirishima and Sero involuntarily shiver. "Ah, the princess' friends…" he said in dark amusement, his gaze falling back on Jirou. "It looks like it was worthwhile letting you scream your lungs out for a while; look at how many of your friends came to save you."

Without wasting a second, Bakugo gave an animalistic roar as he charged towards the wall of middle-eastern soldiers with explosion-enhanced speed, blasting out a powerful cone of explosions towards them and knocking them down like bowling pins. Once the wall of defence was broken, Bakugo immediately leaped forward and aimed to strike down the man with the snake staff.

"Hoh…?" Jafar mused, raising an eyebrow. "Angry, are we? Try to rescue your friend then…if you can."

"SHUT UP AND DIE!" Bakugo declared vehemently as he tensed his arm muscles to deliver a powerful right swing towards Jafar, his palm peppering with a dangerous number of yellow sparks. However, a large shadow dashed forwards as well to intercept the boy. "OUT OF MY WAY!" Bakugo had no choice but to use his explosions to deal with the guard captain Hakim first. The fiery blast burned the upper body of the ginormous man, causing Hakim to groan in pain before glaring at Bakugo. Taking hold of the surprised boy, he slammed the hilt of his scimitar into his stomach, and sent him crashing to the dirt.

"I will not permit you to touch a single hair of the Royal Vizier." Hakim told the ash-blonde haired boy sprawled against the ground coldly.

"Forget the grunts!" Bakugo shouted to his other two classmates, struggling to stand back up. "Aim for the bastard with the snake staff!"

Hearing that got Kirishima and Sero to spring into action, the former hardening both of his arms preparing to bulldoze his way through the line of soldiers while the latter shot out a string of sticky tape towards Jafar. However, Sero's tape was rendered ineffectively when the soldiers caught it and proceeded to dogpile the [Tape] quirk user, crushing him to the ground. Most of them had already recovered from Bakugo's first attack.

Kirishima had better luck; he managed to punch his way through the soldiers but was shock was his fist was caught by the giant captain of the guards known as Captain Hakim with his crushing strength. Not bothering to use his scimitar, Hakim merely delivered a devastating chop to the back which knocked the wind out of Kirishima and sent him tumbling to the ground.

"N-No way…I used my hardening…and he's this strong!?" Kirishima gasped, one hand on his wounded body as he unsteadily got up to his feet. His response was met with another push from Hakim, this time forcing the [Hardening] quirk boy to stay down for good as the giant soldier's great weight prevented Kirishima from moving his limbs.

"Kirishima!" Bakugo shouted in mild concern, and gnashed his teeth furiously at how the villains managed to subdue his two classmates so easily. But thanks to that, the man known as Jafar was left vitually unguarded with a mere two soldiers. Bakugo immediately ignited the nitro-glycerine on his palms and propelled himself forward like rocket towards where Jafar was holding Jirou captive.

"Angry Pomeranian at 2 o'clock! Awwck!" Iago warned his master, flapping his wings frantically.

"Who are you calling an angry Pomeranian!?" Bakugo roared.

"Grand Vizier!" Guard Captain Hakim shouted in concern, in which Jafar responded with a eerie smile tinged with sick amusement.

"It appears that a demonstration of my power is required. Be grateful that you fools shall be the first ones to see it and lived." Jafar pointed the staff in Bakugo's direction and fired a wave of red energy from the snake's eyes, engulfing the approaching boy in a layer of red glow.

"BAKUGO!"

Bakugo did not have the luxury of shouting as he found himself frozen in the exact same spot as when he was exposed to the wave of red energy emitted from Jafar's staff. Bakugo stared at his own frozen body in shock, and tried to activate his explosions, but to no avail. He was then lifted high into the air and felt a mysterious force constricting him and threatening to crush his limbs. He tried to curse out, but nothing came out of his open mouth.

"Is that the best you can do, _little boy_?" Jafar scoffed loudly, sending a malicious gaze towards the helpless figure of Bakugo, alongside Kirishima and Sero who were still down for the count. "Children like you should respect your elders and learn to stay down!" At that last word, the man swung the staff to the side and the action caused Bakugo to be sent flying across the clearing, back to where Sero and Kirishima were.

"What kind of quirk is that?!" Sero shouted in demanding.

"IT'S THE STAFF!" Jirou shouted for her friends to hear. "IT CAN-MMMMGH!" Her words were cut short when Iago swooped in and stuffed a gag in her mouth.

"Y-you bastard…!" Kirishima roared and willed his wounded body to move, but to no avail thanks to Hakim holding him down. "We'll never let you get away with this!"

Jafar watched as the three boys struggled to get back up, mildly amused by how determined the hero students were to rescue their fellow classmate. Upon seeing this scene, Jafar began to laugh, his hideous cackling echoing across the forested battlefield and sending a new sensation of shivers down everybody's spines.

"Looks like this will be more interesting than I thought, I guess they are not called hero students for nothing." He mused to Iago, who returned with an impatient scowl.

"Awwck! With all due respect your rottenness," The parrot interjected angrily, ruffling his feathers irritably. "Shouldn't we be taking our leave about now? The heroes are bound to arrive soon thanks to the racket made by that angry Pomeranian."

"You're right for once, my feathered friend. I do believe we have played around long enough…" Jafar said, his voice turned cold and authoritative. "Hakim."

In one gesture, Hakim sheathed his scimitar and kicked the suppressed Kirishima away, making him skid across the dirt before rolling to a stop. He obediently returned to Jafar's side and slung the bound Jirou over his big shoulder in one fluid motion, placing a gag into her mouth as well. The same goes for Sero, who had been pushed violently aside by the many soldiers dog-piling him earlier before they returned to their master's side.

"Jirou!" Sero shouted, and the three boys watched in horror as the terrified girl let out muffled screams as she helplessly kicked the air in an attempt to free herself from the Agrabah guard captain's grip.

"NO!" her three classmates leap out in one desperate effort, prepared to use whatever means necessary to rescue their music-loving friend from the clutches of the villain, but had barely taken a step forward when Jafar raised his staff and released a bigger wave of red energy from the eyes of the snake staff, bigger than when he stopped Bakugo earlier, and caused the three boys to cry out in anguish as they were forced to kneel on the ground; the red energy from the staff suppressing their bodies like increased gravity. With one lazy sweep, Jafar levitated the three male heroes from the ground and hurled them towards the trees, making them land on their backs painfully. The man barely battled an eyelid as he appraised his own handiwork. The soldiers under Jafar's command also laughed loudly at this scene.

He took a small glance at the horrified face of Jirou, who was shock at how easily her friends were taken down, before turning his attention back towards Bakugo, Kirishima and Sero.

"Listen well you three. I'll be taking the princess," the staff-wielding man informed the boys. "If you ever hope to see her again, bring me the diamond in the rough; the one whose worth lies within. Tell Prince Kaminari that the Royal Vizier of Agrabah, Jafar shall await him."

"Kaminari?" Kirishima echoed in surprise. How did the villain know their classmate's name!?

"_Prince?_" Sero gawked at that title.

Bakugo gritted his teeth angrily and pushed himself off the ground; the effects of the man's strange snake staff finally worn off. He had no idea what Chargedolt had to do with all this, nor was he going to wait for the aforementioned boy to get his ass over here. He was going to take down the villains right now! According to what he witnessed just now, the one leading the villain group had some kind of telekinetic-like quirk related to the snake staff he was wielding. If he could focus all of his explosions to his speed and closed the distance fast enough, he could knock the staff out of his hands and rescue Jirou. Furthermore…

Bakugo's ears perked up as he picked up the distinct sound of rustling leaves, which means that somebody was closing in on the whole lot of them thanks to the noise of the battle. Bakugo had no idea how such a big group had managed to bypass UA's security and into the compound, but there was no way they could escape back out without a teleportation quirk user. The teachers are bound to come, there was no way they can escape with Jirou…

But as Bakugo crouched low and got ready to blast himself forward with his explosions, the man Jafar opened his palm and manifested a baseball-sized orb of rainbow-coloured light, throwing it behind him. The ball of light sailed through the air for a moment before it exploded like a mini supernova, turning into a glittering whirlpool of light swirling and sucking in the surrounding air like a vacuum.

Bakugo had no idea what it was, but he willed his body to propel forward and flew straight towards Jafar despite Kirishima's warnings. However, Jafar smirked and entered the portal alongside the soldiers and guard captain Hakim, who was carrying a frightened Jirou.

"You'll have your chance boy! This is merely the prologue!" Jafar gave one last haughty laugh with his parrot Iago making an annoying face at the [Explosion] quirk boy before they all disappeared into the portal together. Bakugo never felt this panicked before, and he angrily stretched his hand to at least grab hold of his female classmate. However, his palms swiped only air, and he caught one last glimpse of Jirou's terrified expression before the rest of her body was forced into the pool of light.

"B-Bakugo kun…!" she whispered, before vanishing completely.

"EARS!" Bakugo roared, leaping straight towards the portal, not caring where he would end up as long as he could follow Jirou to where that snake staff wielding bastard was heading, but the whirlpool of light dispersed into particles as soon as he made contact, causing him to crash forward into a bush with his own momentum.

In all but mere moments, they were gone. Silence returned to night and it was as though the whole battle never happened.

"No way…Jirou…Jirou was-!"

"T-They're gone…?" Sero remarked in dismay, while Kirishima fell to his knees and grabbed the dirt beneath him with shaking palms, not caring whether if his fingernails were torn off. Bakugo was silently staring the place where the villains had escaped from their grasp, the supressed anger and rage bubbling within him. Clenching his shaking fist, the [explosion] quirk user destroyed the nearby tree with a single explosion with his eyes filled with rage and shock at what just transpired. They…had just lost…the villains escape right under their freaking noses…and worst of all…

"GOD DAMMIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIT!" Bakugo roared into the quiet night. The man with the snake staff, those weird-attired soldiers, and the sassy parrot…they were all gone, and Jirou was taken from them.

**=[]=**

_In the palace, right here, lived a wicked wazir;_

_the advisor to Sultan Hamed._

_And this part time magician, this amateur seer,_

_wished his boss, the good sultan, dead!_

_He was charming and slick, this despicable parasite!_

_What a villain, boo hiss!_

_Further proofs, dears, that this is another Arabian night…_

\- _Lyrics describing Jafar from 'Arabian Nights'_

.

**A/N:** Hello everyone, and welcome to another chapter of Boku no Hero: Once Upon a Time. Write a comment! Let's see if you can guess who will fit into each story!


	3. Chapter 3: Aftermath of the Prologue

**Chapter 3: Aftermath of the Prologue**

.

"Come on Kaminari just spill it! Tell us the entire story!"

Denki irritably massaged his tempers as he tried to calm down, which was impossible since almost everyone in the room was dying to know the reason why he would suddenly confess to the Jirou right in the middle of Eri's birthday party. He kept his gaze averted from the girls, who had come over to the boy's group at the lobby couches right after Mina decided to spread the juicy story she just overheard; that girl had a knack for spreading stories which were love-related in the dorm. Right after Bakugo, Sero and Kirishima left to find Jirou, the entire situation was conveyed to everyone and they were all curious to hear from Kaminari himself. Thanks to that, no one was in the mood to continue cleaning up the after-party mess except Todoroki, much to the dismay of Iida Tenya.

"So…Kaminari kun confessed to Jirou huh?" Hakagure asked casually as she situated herself behind the slightly blushing boy, her excitement rising alongside the one who told her everything which had happened earlier; Ashido Mina.

"Oi Ashido!" Kaminari yelled while sweating profusely. "Do you really have to tell everyone?"

"There's no need to be ashamed Kaminari kun. It takes a lot of courage to confess to someone, so there's no way anyone's going to laugh at you. But I didn't expect that you would make such a bold move." Tsuyu chimed in kindly while sitting across the group of boys, who were all nodding their heads in agreement.

"Yeah Kaminari, aren't we all your pals?" Sato Rikidou gave a sly smirk as he clapped the embarrassed boy on the back. "Shouldn't you worry about how to convince Jirou that your feelings are sincere? According to Mina, it seems that Jirou feels like you're only messing with her."

"Yeah well…I'm serious about it alright!?" Kaminari exclaimed for the umpteen time. I really spent a lot of time with her for the past year, and we're always talking about music and stuff we both find interesting. She also told me that I'm a real interesting guy to hang out with…so I thought I give it a shot…how am I supposed to know that she'll take it so harshly!?" Kaminari admitted, feeling the heat rise up to his face again as he retold his sudden confession. Luckily for him, it seemed that their desire to tease him about it was short-termed, and they genuinely wanted to help him out in his endeavour.

"That's to be expected," Mina laid back on the couch and commented. "Given that she knows you love to flirt with any girl, it's natural that she'll think you're not serious about it. And besides, did she do anything that hints she might be interested in you?"

"Well," Kaminari was stumped by this question. "There was one time we went to the music store to buy our favourite artiste's songs, we kind of clicked when I asked her about the songs and music she recommends. She always helps me with my homework…oh and she always enjoys it when we team up and I had to use my quirk!" He added hopefully, but winced when he saw his classmates' somewhat apologetic expressions.

"…no, I don't think those meant anything Kaminari san." Yaoyorozu sighed in exasperation, a hand pinching the bridge of her nose. "You can't possibly think Jirou has a special interest in you just by that. She does enjoy teaming up with you, but only before she enjoys the look you have on your face whenever you short-circuit yourself."

_Whey…! Whey!_ (flashback)

"NO WAY!" Kaminari screamed, dropping to his knees as he processed that fact, causing his classmates to look at him with a little pity.

"Wow…you're surprisingly clueless and horrible at this aren't you?" Mina pointed out without reservation, causing the boy to slump into a state of depression. "And there's my point," Mina pointed at the boy. "Deeper relationships are not just born on a whim, but are forged over time with effort and patience. Starting from now, you have to put more effort if you want to win her over Kaminari."

"Kaminari, don't lose hope! You still have a chance!" Uraraka Ochako assured, hoping to placate the poor boy in front of her. "I think you just have to take things slow…we are only in our second year of UA after all."

With that, the boys took a crestfallen Kaminari away to cheer him up, and the rest of the class 2-A girls were left to their own devices.

**=[]=**

"Speaking of taking things slow," Mina let out a teasing grin towards a few of her female peers quietly spectating the whole thing. "I wonder about the progress of our other potential lovebirds in this room hmm?" Her eyes slowly focused on a certain brown-haired girl as well as the one beside her with a black-haired ponytail. While Yaoyorozu retained her cool facial expressions, Uraraka had to fight the flush which threatened to overtake her features.

"My goodness Ashido-san. I'm sure I don't know what you are talking about." Yaoyorozu coolly replied. "It's not good to insinuate your romantic desires among your fellow peers you know?"

"Oh yeah?" Mina countered. "Even though you keep making glances at a certain dual elementalist during Eri's birthday party?"

"While I don't deny wanting to be close to him, it's not good to rush things like what Kaminari-kun did with Jirou-san." Yaoyorozu coughed softly into her hand with a slight blush. "It's essential that you must find an opportunity with the right atmosphere."

"Besides," the [creation] quirk user continued, "As heroes-in-training, it's not wise to mix love matters with our studies at this point. There will be ample time should we wish to pursue such romantic endeavors."

"If your target is an aloof powerhouse who is an airhead when it comes to love, you might have to rethink your strategies a little, Yaomomo." Mina deadpanned. "He's as dense as an iceberg. But my bigger priority now is situation between the two skittish cinnamon rolls who are always together ever since it was decided that Eri would live together with us. Soo, report your progress Ochako!"

"M-Mina! There's nothing going on between me and Deku-kun ok? The reason why he asked me to help him with Eri is because it's a big responsibility to be responsible for a small girl living here! A-and it appears that I'm the only one whom Eri is rather comfortable with! There's nothing suspicious about that! Alright!?" Ochako exclaimed, waving her hands wildly like her friend Iida.

"Um…what about me…?" A familiar, timid voice spoke up from the corner, grabbing the girls' attention, who all turned to see Izuku coming down the stairs, looking at them with a questioning look upon hearing his name being mentioned. "Is there something wrong Uraraka?"

"AHH! D-Deku! H-How long have you been there?!" the [Zero-gravity] quirk girl asked in a flustered manner, failing to notice how the flush creeping up her own cheeks. This did not go unnoticed by the rest of her peers, who chose not to point it out and continued watching her amusing reactions.

"Uh…only just? If there's something I should not be hearing, rest assured I did not hear much." Izuku explained, worried if he got in the way of some important topic. "Eri had trouble sleeping so I told her a bedtime story; it's best that we try to keep it down for the rest of the night."

"Aww…that's so cute! Oh and don't worry about it Midori, it's nothing really important…_for you specifically_." Mina waved her hand at the boy, while giving Ochako a wink. "And sure, we'll be careful while we talk. Wouldn't want to wake our little princess now, would we?"

"I don't see Kacchan anywhere…so are Kirishima and Sero…I could have sworn I heard him shouting just a moment ago."

"They are out looking for Jirou. Oh yeah, you won't here just now because you were with Eri right?" Mina explained, making Izuku raise his eyebrow in questioning. "Don't worry, Jirou and Kaminari just had a little dispute so the three of them went out to get her back; they should be coming back soon."

"O-oh…I see." Midoriya then walked down the stairway, helping out a frustrated Iida who was left alone to sweep up the crumbs and rubbish littering the floor thanks the rest of the boys who were busy giving Kaminari love advice. As he walked away, Ochako let out a tired sigh.

"Even if you say that you don't have a thing for our curly stutterbox there, your actions and facial expressions say otherwise." Mina and Tooru said to the blushing girl in perfect sync, causing Uraraka to cover her face with her hands in case the boy in question was still looking in their direction.

"N-No…I-I'm not-" Ochako began, sweating profusely and jumbling her words in a desperate attempt to save herself.

"Oh my god, you're so naïve Ochako." Mina sighed in exasperation, gazing at her classmate with a worrying look. "Would you rather wait for _Midori_ to confess to you instead? But someone as shy as him will never start he confession though, right?"

"Furthermore," Momo added her two-cents politely. "For someone as hardworking as Midoriya, he may not consider the option of pursuing romance and focus his time solely on studies. He's one of the few who works their very hardest after all…"

"That's…" Uraraka could not help but remember the events of the Provisional License Exam; she remembered the painful feeling when Camie Utsushimi was with Midoriya at that time. However, she made a silent vow to focus on her hero training first and was determined not to let her own feelings get in the way of their current relationship. She admired Midoriya's hardworking attitude and she wanted to respect that. But keeping that promise seemed to be easier said than done…

Uraraka knew that they were being unnecessary nosy, but their intentions were good and nothing they had told her were lies. She had indeed set aside her feelings for Deku, but they were something she wanted to sort out for herself. She was of course grateful to her peers, but she was currently satisfied with the way she was with Midoriya now and wished to tell them that, but a wave of hesitation swept over her whenever she wanted to make that fact clear. Just why…?

"You don't have to answer now Ochako-chan." Tsuyu spoke up for the first time upon seeing how stressed her friend was. Clearly all this teasing was turning into a stressful experience for Uraraka. Even if Tsuyu would liked it for her to be honest, she did not want to see Uraraka pressured to revealing something so personal. "It's okay to take things slowly, just like what you suggested to Kaminari-kun just now."

Momo also took pity on the brunette when she saw how quiet she was. "I think that's enough love talk for today. There's no need to take what we said seriously okay? Uraraka-san?"

"Okay, we'll stop there. We just want you to know that you got our support and if you need help, you can rely on us. But do you get it Ochako?" Mina offered her last piece of advice not just to Uraraka, but to the rest of the girls present. "Don't think that two years will be enough; our time in UA will pass by in a blink of an eye! Sometimes we girls have to step up our game and make the first move!"

"The other person's waiting for you!" was all the girls needed to hear to get some of them blushing.

"Alright then," Mina yawned loudly. "Let's help the class prez clean a little before we turn in for the night…but wait…where in the world are Kirishima and the rest? It's been like half an hour since they left. It shouldn't take _that_ long to find Jirou unless she left the campus, right?"

"Now that you mentioned it, they are taking quite a while." Yaoyorozu muttered. "I wonder if something happened. Perhaps it was a bad idea to take Bakugo along with them."

"Nah, I don't think it's anything serious." Tooru answered. "Given Bakugo's personality, I bet he just tripped in the dark and is now yelling 'DIE PAVEMENT! DIE!"" This caused a couple of them to cackle at Tooru's cheap imitation of their blonde classmate, even making Yaomomo cover her mouth to hide her laughter. When suddenly…

**_BANG! _**

The giant bang rang out from the door, causing the students in the dorm lobby to jump. When they saw the familiar faces entering by the door, they almost relaxed, but the expression on their faces, especially Bakugo's made them tensed and anxious.

"Bakugo! Please refrain from making so much noise at such a late hour! Eri is upstairs sleeping for goodness…sake…" Iida began to start his habitual lecturing, but stopped short when he realized Bakugo was neither making an angry retort nor looking in his direction; his face was unnaturally neutral, but his eyes danced with a livid light.

"K-Kirishima?" Mina nervously looked towards her horn buddy for a clue, but his usual upbeat and grin were nowhere to be found, only a despair-filled expression remained on his face. His coat was torn at places and fresh cuts could be seen on his face; evidence of a fight. Sero's condition wasn't any better; multiple bruises decorated his face and he had his face lowered. "Didn't you three went out to get Jirou? What's-"

Mina never got a chance to complete her sentence as the [Explosion] quirk boy's eyes aimed at a certain blonde-haired classmate and he made his way forward, angrily blasting away the table which was in the way of his warpath and causing some of the 2-A students to scramble back in fright. Kaminari choked in shock as he found himself lifted up by the collar and thrown onto the floor, great pain surged through his back and the [Electrification] quirk boy groaned from the impact.

"YOU…" Bakugo's voice came out as a dangerous whisper. "What did you do?"

"Kacchan! What are you doing!?" Midoriya shouted with a mixed expression of shock and anger, but the blonde youth paid him no heed.

"Fuck off Deku! I only got beef with Charge Dolt here!" Bakugo snarled at everyone before turning his attention back to Kaminari. He was about to pounce on Kaminari when he was suddenly restrained by Midoriya, Iida and Todoroki. "GET THE FUCK OFF ME! What the fuck did you do Charge Dolt!? What did you do to damn ears!?"

"Bakugo calm down!" shouted Tokoyami, running to Kaminari's side to help the fallen boy stand up. "Why are you hitting him out of nowhere!?"

"What's your problem!?" growled Kaminari, rising to his feet unsteadily while rubbing the part where his back hit the ground. "I confessed to her that's all! I didn't-"

"You got something to do with this!" Bakugo shouted back, the furrow in his eyebrows growing deeper by the second, forcing himself free from his three classmates' hold. "Damn Ears is gone, and those villains who took her knew your name!"

Midoriya forced himself between his two classmates and pushed them apart with more effort than he expected, given his childhood friend's furious state. He knew Bakugo wasn't the kind to start a fight without a valid reason, but at this rate they were never going to know the reason behind his sudden change in behavior. "Kacchan, listen!" Izuku stated in a calm and commanding tone, "You have to tell us what happened first! What do you mean, Jirou is gone?"

"What part of what I said just now did you all not understand!?" Bakugo retorted furiously, but with his temper kept more in check and clenched his fists tightly. "Ears was taken by a group of villains. Some guy wearing a turban holding a snake staff, with these weirdly-dressed soldiers and a talking parrot took her through some portal right within the school campus!"

The entire class was stunned silent for a moment when Bakugo said that.

"A-Are you making fun of us right now?" Iida Tenya asked uncertainly, breaking the silence. "That kind of absurd thing-"

"Do we look like we're in a joking mood right now!?" Kirishima shot back in a broken tone. "I'm telling you guys, Jirou was kidnapped! We were looking for Jirou and when we found her phone lying on the ground, we realized something was wrong. There were screams, and the three of us found Jirou bound and captured by this weird dude dressed in red/black clothes holding a snake staff, a talking parrot which he called Iago, and several soldiers holding swords!"

"He managed to escaped with Jirou before Hound Dog-sensei and Ectoplasm-sensei found us, through some portal which emitted light." Sero Hanta added in dismay. "But before he left, that man said that if we ever hope to see Jirou again, we had to tell Kaminari Denki that Jafar, the Royal Vizier of Agrabah is waiting for him."

"Jafar?" Midoriya repeated, looking at Uraraka for confirmation. "A parrot called Iago? _Agrabah_? Isn't that-"

"Those names belonged to an old fairy tale my parents used to tell me as well." The [Zero-Gravity] quirk girl confirmed Izuku's guess. "Aladdin and the Magic lamp. But…Agrabah's just a fiction name; it's not even a real place!"

"It sounds like something from a fairy tale gone wrong," Yaoyorozu said forebodingly. "But how did this villain know about Kaminari-kun? What is his motive for calling him out?"

"The heck should I know?" Bakugo snapped back. "Hound Dog and Ectoplasm have gone back to the staff building and I'm guessing it's now a major uproar in there right now. I'm asking that damn Charge Dolt over there because there must be some kind of connection between him and that bastard Jafar; we'll have a clue to where they freaking took Ears."

Every single student of 2-A looked up towards Kaminari, who had not spoken a word ever since Bakugo spilled out the news of Jirou's kidnapping. His eyes were covered by his long bangs while his entire face was pale with disbelief. "T-They kidnapped Jirou?" he repeated in a low voice.

Bakugo apparently had it with him repeating the facts, so he took a few angry steps forward, only to be held back by Kirishima. "Yes, Kaminari," Bakugo used his real name for the first time. "They took Jirou. And from the words of that snake bastard, it sounded like they were using her to get to you. So I'm asking you for the last time, what is your connection to those bastards!?"

"You think I wanted this?" Kaminari eyed his suspicious classmate with a frown. "Just because that man told you that he's waiting for me? I have no idea who that Jafar guy is!"

"Then how would he know your name!?"

"Like hell I know!"

"That's enough!" Iida intervened as he stood in front of Bakugo, struggling against his enraged, barbaric strength. The rest of the class stood by with their eyes flickering between Kaminari with his increasing anger, and Bakugo's murderous expression.

"But…" Kaminari continued with a dark look. "If this joker who dresses up as some fairy tale villain says he wants to meet me, then I'll gladly go over and give him a shock therapy he'll _never_ forget. He's gonna pay for taking Jirou, and I'll personally make sure of that."

"Kaminari…please calm down; no one's blaming you for that." Uraraka fretted. "From the way the villain says it, it sounds like a trap. We should not be hasty and inform the teachers first. Going out in the open may just be what the villain wants you to do."

"That's right," Todoroki added. "If what Bakugo's saying is true, then we are all in more danger than we thought. The villain has the ability to teleport inside the school campus; he can anywhere, watching our every move."

"So what do we do now?" Mina asked in concern. If this new villain could pop out in the middle of the school campus and abduct their friend so easily, then neither of them were safe.

"We have no choice; we can't do anything as of now…" Iida concluded heavily.

"It's already midnight; it's too risky to form a search party now." Tsuyu Asui commented thoughtfully with a finger on her chin, but everyone could clearly see the fear in her eyes. "I agree with the Todoroki and the class president, we should stick together for the night and leave it to the pros tomorrow."

"We can't just sit here and do nothing!" Kaminari insisted, looking at Iida and Todoroki angrily as though he couldn't believe how heartless he was in this situation. "For all we know, Jirou may be out there calling for our help! The villain may still be in the school! How could you-!"

"YOU THINK I DON'T KNOW THAT!?" Iida raised his voice and angrily pushed Kaminari back, his outburst causing few to jump back in surprise. "DON'T BE STUPID KAMINARI-KUN! If you go out there now you might be playing into the hands of the villain! There's a lot to take in tonight…I-I don't want to lose another fellow classmate…s-so please…don't…"

Everyone remained silent at this, it was devastating enough to know that their music-loving friend was taken by some fairy-tale loving lunatic, but seeing the class prez act like this caused them to feel a deeper sense of despair.

"We can't just sit here and do nothing," Yaoyorozu finally said softly, small angry tears forming at the corners of her eyes. "But…there must be something we can do right now; something that will help find Jirou!"

…

"That's right…what Kaminari said may be true." Midoriya insisted. "If the villain is still in the vicinity, then we have to make use of this chance to search him, or find any clues at least. There's bound to be something left behind by the villain!" At this, many of the 2-A students nodded their heads in understanding.

"Alright," Midoriya said decisively, moving towards the door. "A small search party will do. The rest of you will stay here and keep watch; the villain can teleport, so no one must be alone! Uraraka, I'm sorry to trouble you, but you need to wake Eri up and stay by her side!"

"Got it!"

"I…can ask the birds and forest animals to help scan the area." Koda offered, raising his hand meekly. "I don't know if Jirou is still in the area, but I can at least find some clues about where she was taken."

"That's a great idea," Todoroki nodded at the [Ani-voice] quirk user approvingly. "Bakugo, we need to know where Jirou was last seen. Could you-"

"Don't tell me what to do Icy-hot, just shut up and follow me. Deku, Icy-Hot, Four-Eyes and Charge Dolt will do, the rest of you just stay here and stay on guard." Bakugo snapped, turning and opening the front door. The five of them set out into a run, quickly heading towards the site of the kidnapping with Bakugo taking the lead while the rest tried to keep up. Along the way, Kaminari caught a glimpse of the [explosion] quirk user glancing back at him suspiciously, before continuing forward with a scoff. Bakugo probably bought him along because he still suspected Kaminari, and this caused the blonde electric quirk hero to avertedly turn away with a sense of guilt.

"Kaminari-kun!" Izuku looked at the disheartened boy from the side as they sprinted through the forest, the former slowing down a little to talk. "We'll find Jirou for sure!"

"Midoriya. You have to believe me, I didn't-"

"I know you have nothing to do with this," Izuku assured Kaminari with a smile before turning his determined eyes back to the road. "It's weird that the villain knows your name, but it doesn't matter now! We're going to find and save her, right?"

"Yeah, thanks!" Kaminari answered gratefully. That's right, there's no use overthinking things. If the villain was baiting him out using Jirou, then he's going to get a fight he'll never forget. They will rescue Jirou, no matter the cost.

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A/N: Thanks to R.E.C.D, Ghostbell777 and LogBook27062000 for the favourites and follows! Hope you enjoy the chapter! Write a comment on what you think!


	4. Chapter 4: Jirou, Where Are Thou?

A/N: Hello and welcome to another chapter of Boku no Hero: Once Upon a Time. Thanks to **Fencer29** for reviewing the last chapter. Your pairings are interesting, but I won't pair Mineta with anyone (that guy's a real perv). But why spoil the ending when it's only the beginning of the story? Enjoy the chapter!

**Chapter 4: Jirou, Where are Thou?**

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All Might never stopped trying to call anyone from the school as soon as he received the emergency message. As the car picking him up skidded to a halt, All Might quickly jumped out and rushed towards the 2-A dorms as fast as his skinny body could take him. The sickening feeling in his gut only intensified as he saw a barricade enclosing the entire forested park located right beside the UA's PE field; and many police personnel running about together with members of the UA faculty.

"Everyone search this entire area! I want every clue or speck of evidence you can find! NOW!" One of the police yelled, and everyone searched desperate for any trace of the [Earphone-Jack] quirk girl abducted the previous night. But nothing came up, even if the help of Hound Dog's exceptional senses or Ectoplasm's absurd number of clones, making everyone anxious. All Might was about to ask a nearby officer for the current status, but a hand gripped his shoulder, revealing Aizawa. The man's gaunt eyes swept past the crime scene, before he wordlessly took the former number 1 hero to the staff conference room.

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"What in the world happened last night!?" Yagi asked Principal Nezu, the former number 1 hero could not believe his ears when the [high-specs] quirk user quickly filled him in on the emergency situation. Just the night before, he had seen the entire class of 1-A being excited for their long-waited birthday party for young Eri, and the next morning he was told that Jirou Kyouka had gone missing.

He was prepared to walk into the school excited to see young Midoriya and the rest of his classmates, but the sense of dread hit hard when he saw the message sent by Principal Nezu after midnight. It was only after Aizawa briefed him as he walked All Might to the teacher's conference room that he was able to get the gist of the situation. The only thing he could do now is to console the shaken students of class 2-A…and he felt powerless.

"Not missing, but kidnapped." Nezu rectified All Might grimly. "This is something I too did not expect that a villain would so daringly approach our school premises and take away one of the students…I have my own invigilance to blame."

"You two better stop shifting the blame to yourselves; neither of you could have predicted this situation." Eraserhead told the two of them as he sat by his seat in the teacher's meeting room. "If anything, it was all of our fault that security was not tight enough. We should never have let our guard down, especially on our own premises."

"And that led to another student kidnapping." All Might concluded despairingly. "Again…my own powerlessness infuriates me…while I was enjoying my break, a student has to suffer by the hands of an unknown villain-!"

Toshinori garnered looks of sympathy. Midnight placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. "Look Al…no Toshinori, none of us could have expected this to happen. Here we thought the surprise attacks from the villains would somewhat be halted after the capture of the villain Kurogiri with the portal quirk. Never would we expect another villain with similar abilities."

All Might bit his lip in frustration, making the rest of the teachers look on in concern.

"It's a little too late to play the blame game don't you think?" Vlad King, the homeroom teacher of class 1-B interrupted with a frown. "What matters now is who or what was responsible for last night's incident. The only members of the staff were Ectoplasm and Hound-Dog, who claimed they rushed to the scene when the latter heard noises of fighting and heavy breathing. But by the time they arrive, the villains were already gone, along with Jirou Kyouka."

"This is like the USJ incident and the Training Camp Bakugo kidnapping combined…" Cementoss added worriedly. "A villain who managed to bypass the security system, unnoticed by the patrolling staff and escaping with a student no less…"

"A story the media will kill to publish I can tell," Aizawa added darkly. "We have collected the details regarding the appearance and abilities of the villain. It may sound like a joke, but I urge you all to listen seriously." Aizawa stated stoically as he read off the statements retrieved from Bakugo, Kirishim, Sero and several other eye-witnesses. "Our culprit is a man estimated to be in his late fourties, wearing red and black garments resembling those worn by middle-eastern royalty. He has a staff shaped like a snake, as well as a 'talking parrot' called Iago and multiple accomplices wielding swords. He calls himself Jafar, the great vizier of Agrabah."

"What the hell's with that?" Present Mic snorted loudly as he processed this information. "This villain sounds like a ripoff of a fairy tale villain that I used to know when I was a kid."

"There's more," Aizawa continued reading off the reports. "According to Bakugo, this villain possessed multiple quirks, from what we can summarise from all his swearing during the interrogation. One, he has a telekinetic quirk which allows him to move objects and control them at will; powerful enough to keep Bakugo Katsuki, Kirishima Ejirou and Sero Hanta at bay. Two, he can create portals; that was how he managed to flee the crime scene quickly with Jirou."

Present Mic spoke out "But something doesn't make sense! According to the testimonial of Kirishima Ejirou, Jirou just went out for a moment and then 'BAM!', it just so happens that the villains appear and take her away, it's pretty obvious that he's targeting Jirou and Kaminari. But why?! Unlike Bakugo who was kidnapped during the training camp because he exhibited that wild nature of his during the sports meet, those two particularly don't stand out!"

"I believe it's safe to assume that the kidnapper has some sort of history with Jirou, or with Kaminari Denki at the very least." Aizawa surmised darkly. "He may have his eye on both of them since the very beginning and has been watching their every move, pouncing on the exact moment Jirou chose to be alone when no one's watching."

"And what the hell is with the location the villain gave, _Agrabah_!?" Vlad King bellowed. "That place is a fictional country in a fairy tale! If that bastard intention was for Kaminari Denki to go after him, why would he give a place that doesn't exist in this world!? That guy had no intention of returning his hostage to us, is he!?"

Nezu hummed in thought as he read through the reports. "And so far, there has not been any message or indication of the villain wanting any sort of ransom. The villain's methods and thinking are completely unreadable this time, an extremely worrisome scenario."

"What are you trying to say?" The gaunt man asked, not liking where this was going.

"In all my years of dealing with criminals, it's the villains who are driven by revenge and personal grudges, that are the most dangerous." Aizawa answered darkly. "Even if it means forfeiting their own lives, they are willing to do anything to watch the ones they hate suffer. Giving a false location…I have reason to believe that the villain is doing all he can to make us suffer mentally, for the longer Jirou is missing, the chances of her being-"

"Aizawa! Cut it out!" Midnight scolded, a horrified expression on her face as her fellow staff described what could possibly be the worst-case scenario.

"I'm afraid that Aizawa's speculations may not be too far off. This villain must be doing this for a personal grudge." Nezu pointed out. "And as much as I hate to suspect a student, I fear that Kaminari may be our only source to finding out the identity of our mysterious captor.

"But we've already tried that," Midnight, the R-rated heroine of UA gave an exasperated sigh. "No matter how much we probed, Kaminari insisted that he has no recollection of this individual known as 'Jafar'. You should have seen the poor boy; all this questioning makes him think that it's all his fault!"

"In any case," Nezu crossed his fingers and gazed at each of the Yuuei staff's eyes. "As a school, what we have to do is to be able to guarantee the safety of our students. In addition to our search for Jirou Kyouka, we have to increase the security around the student's dorms as well."

"Make sure that no one is to leave the campus for the time being," Nezu turned to All Might, Aizawa, Cemetoss and Midnight, referring to each of them respectively. "No student is allowed to leave the dorms or wander alone without the supervision of a teacher. We will not permit another incident like this on the school grounds ever again."

"Speaking of which, some of the students have requested to join the search." Cementoss pointed out. "I've heard that you are allowing them to accompany the search effort."

"Are you sure that is a good idea?" Aizawa asked. "I can relate to their anxiety, but…"

"I have made the proper arrangements on that matter," Nezu said. "I allowed them to create search parties, under the condition that a pro-hero is willing to accompany them. We are currently exhausting all our efforts to find Ms Jirou, all we can do now is pray that we aren't too late."

**=[]=**

**Heights Alliance Dorms Lobby:**

By the instructions of Aizawa, no one in class 1-A was to leave the dorms without supervision or special permission. Since morning till now, the class had tirelessly accompanied the school staff and police officers to scourge the surrounding area for any sign of their music-loving classmate. Places she visited, abandoned warehouses, villain hideouts long thought to be left behind, anything that the police could think of. But sadly, nothing positive as turned up; the only thing they managed to find since the previous day was the phone Jirou dropped when she was taken away by Jafar and his parrot, as well as a few feathers, molted by Iago as though it was mocking them.

Most of the students were sitting by the sofa and dining table by the common area. Even though they were safe from the cold autumn weather outside, they felt as though their hearts were pierced by cold icicles, constantly thinking about where their fellow friend could be. Kaminari himself was sitting by the corner, holding Jirou's phone as though it was a lifeline to how he may find the girl, refusing to talk or meet any of his classmates' eyes.

"I'm really worried for Kaminari…" Ochako muttered sadly as she gazed at the [electrification] quirk boy's devastated figure, having taken a seat beside Midoriya and Iida to rest from this morning's search. "He'll usually joke and goof around to lighten the mood…is he still blaming himself for what happened to Jirou?"

Midoriya turned back around to face the crestfallen brunette and sighed as well. "Even Koda and his animals cannot find anything related to her disappearance or the identity of the kidnapper. There was simply no trace of this villain called 'Jafar' among the villain register."

"Forget about the villain's history, what about Jirou?" Ochako asked. "In the end, we couldn't even find a trace from last night, even with everyone looking. I've seen the principal with Jirou's parents this morning. I can't describe how distraught they looked; her mother was in tears the entire time."

"Do you think Nezu told them about what the villain said, you know…about Kaminari?" Mineta bluntly asked while poking his fork into his cold lunch in a bored manner, the atmosphere of the dorm killing his appetite.

"Mineta-kun stop playing with your food! And in regards to your question, of course not!" Iida reprimanded while giving the [Pop-off] quirk midget a side glance. "Imagine what kind of misunderstandings that will cause. I'm sure the principal is aware of that. And besides…"

Iida gazed at his spiky-haired blonde classmate sitting at the corner, before continuing fretfully. "I do not wish to see him in more pain than he's already in. He truly believes that if he had never confessed to Jirou last night, none of this would have happened."

"He's still taking what Bakugo said last night to heart," answered Ojirou sadly from his seat opposite Ochako. "He still believes that he's the sole reason why Jirou was kidnapped so easily the night before."

Ochako turned back to the group sitting around the dinning table. "I wish there was something we can do…there must be at least something that we're missing here. I'm thinking of going back to where Bakugo and the others had last seen Jirou; there has to be something-!"

"Uraraka, if even the police and pro-heroes could not find anything after searching through Musutafu City, what's the chance that we can find something?" Sato answered tiredly, the [sugar rush] quirk had tried to cook a meal for everyone to lift up their spirits, but none of them had the appetite to eat a morsel in this situation. "I overhead Inspector Tsukauchi talking about expanding their search to the regions outside Musutafu, but there's the chance that the villain may have taken Jirou way out of Japan. Or in the worst case…"

"DON'T SAY THAT!" Tooru cried out shrilly, the folds of her shirt showing her cupping her ears with her hands, prompting Tsuyu sitting beside her to hug the invisible girl and calm her down. "How could you possibly think in such a way!? Jirou-chan…t-there's no way…!"

"Calm down, let's try to think about this calmly." Izuku observed and told everyone seriously. "It's only been one day since Jirou's kidnapping. This Jafar character seems to want us to follow him, so there's no way that he'll do anything to Jirou before then, so we have to keep looking! We are already taking shifts together with other pro-heroes, so we are sure to find some sort of lead sooner or later."

The room once again was shrouded in silence.

Just then, the sound of opening doors caught everyone's attention and strolling in with mild fatigue were Tokoyami and Kirishima, their anxious eyes looking at their classmates' in the smallest chance that they had some good news instead.

"How was it ribbit?" Tsuyu stood up and approached them hopefully. "Did you find anything-?"

"My deepest apologies…we couldn't find anything." Tokoyami answered regretfully. "I was with Hawks and a few others; not even Hawks' feathers could sense anything. It's as though…they had disappeared entirely from this plane of existence."

"Yeah, I'm with him on that." Kirishima added fretfully. "Me, Fatgum and Tamaki-senpai spent the entire day asking people regarding the villain called Jafar. But no one has actually seen his face before, which was weird! Even the police did not have any records of such a man before; it's like he just appeared out of nowhere."

"So even the pros have no luck huh?" Ashido muttered, patting Kirishima on the back while the latter crashed on the couch feeling exhausted. "Hmm? Wait a minute, weren't Todoroki and Yaomomo in your group? Where did they go off to?"

"They went to search for a little longer together with Endeavor." Tokoyami answered back. "Yaoyorozu figured that she may cover more ground if she tags along with Todoroki's dad, that guy's insanely fast when catching criminals so Yaoyorozu said that she would be able to ask them if they had relations to this 'Jafar' character."

"Oh yeah…I kind of remembered that she told us that before she left today."

"I really hope she doesn't overwork herself," Kirishima added worriedly. "I kind of feel like she took Jirou's kidnapping quite deeply, the girl is her best friend after all. Will she be okay?"

"I wouldn't worry so much if I were you," said Ashido with a sly smile. "After all, Todoroki is with her. The two recommended students of our class make the strongest tag team there is. Besides, they are with Endeavor. If anything; the villains should be careful."

"But still," Ochako added. "I'm kind of surprised that Todoroki volunteered to come along with her. Besides hero work, I hardly see him being proactive in other matters."

"Well technically, it was Todoroki who asked her out to patrol along with Endeavor, and she agreed to come along quite readily." Mina smiled slyly.

"What!? You mean Yaoyorozu-kun has an affection for Todoro-!" Iida asked aloud.

"It's not as simple as it sounds," Mina chuckled tiredly. "The guy's a major blockhead when it comes to love. Todoshoto told his father the situation and he agreed to form a search party around the outskirts of Musutafu. He probably invited Yaomomo along because he knew how close they are to each other."

"Well, they really developed a lot ever since they teamed up against Aizawa Sensei during the practical exams." Ashido elaborated smugly. "I don't know the exact details of what happened during their fight with Aizawa-sensei, but Yaomomo said to me that her confidence was restored thanks to some pep talk by Todoroki. I guess her talking more to him since that day and spending time together is her way of showing thanks, I often see the both of them having their 'study dates' and quirk training, just the two of them."

"And I bet Todoroki's grateful for that." Tooru let out a high-pitched giggle. "Can we expect some steamy developments from now on?"

"Hold up girl," replied Mina. "This is Todoroki we're talking about here; our class' powerhouse with a heart as cold as a glacier since the beginning of the year. But I have to admit that he wasn't as anti-social like he was around us during our first year as 1-A; he used to have this distant, uncaring look in his eyes that honestly scared me a little. He talks to us a lot more often now, particularly to Yaomomo when he wants some tips on how he can better make use of his quirk."

"When you put it that way, I guess there's a chance for both of them after all." Sero Hanta chuckled. "So what's the problem?"

"That guy is waaaay too serious when he talks," sighed Mina. "Even when he tries to crack a joke, his voice just makes it so hard to tell if he's joking, and he take things too literally! Remember that time when Mount Lady taught us about interviews when she came over as a lecturer? When she told Todoroki that his looks may break the hearts of the ladies watching, that guy seriously thought they were going to die because of it! Hahahahaha!"

"That's rude Ashido," Ochako berated the guffawing girl. "Every one has his own quirks. Todoroki may be a little dense when it comes to things unrelated to hero work, but I'm glad he's has opened his heart more to all of us. Though I'm not sure if he views Yaomomo the way you think Mina."

"Oh he better," Mina snickered. "Despite Todoroki's prince-like looks and the kind of guy all the girls covets, he absolutely sucks in the matters of romance and the like. Yaomomo sure has her work cut out for her."

"Well," Izuku couldn't help but smile as he watched his classmates laugh; the heavy atmosphere being lifted off the class for a moment. "Let's hope they come back with some good news."

**=[]=**

**Outside UA:**

All Might sat down beside his long time friend Tsukauchi in the police cruiser parked near the kidnapping scene, both forced to take a break from the supervisor of this investigation as it was nearing midnight. The former pro-hero had just came back from talking with Jirou's parents, and despite not being blamed by the distraught two, his heart was riddled with guilt by the way they begged him to find their beloved daughter. He was handed a coffee which he gladly took, taking sips of it. "Thanks." Tsukauchi nodded in reply. They just sat quietly, thinking about what little leads they have gathered so far; not even a tiniest crumb of evidence could indicate where Jirou could have been taken. They didn't know what kind of villain they were currently dealing with, only a dangerous one.

"Where could young Jirou possibly be?"

"Don't worry. It's only a matter of time until we can crack down the villain's identity." Tsukauchi encouraged, sipping on his own drink. All Might shook his head. "There's something weird about all of this, the villain carried out this kidnapping effortlessly like he was planning this for ages. If that's the case, why would he risk so much coming into the UA compound just to take away one person? Is it truly to target young Kaminari? I just feel that there's more than meets the eye."

"There's no use thinking so much Toshi," the inspector reminded, setting his coffee down. "Be it a hidden agenda…or a personal grudge, there is no way we can ever perfectly decipher a villain's thought process. There's nothing to understand; there's only…evil."

All Might only sighed at this, prompting his long-time friend to continue. "We police will do everything in our power to ensure the safety of your students. If that villain's true aim is the boy called Kaminari, then all the more reason we will stay guard and capture him when he comes back."

**=[]=**

**Eri's room:**

"Miss Uraraka," Eri asked as Ochako was tucking her into her bed that night, the brunette offering to accompany the [Rewind] quirk girl for the day. "Will miss Jirou be okay?"

Ochako let out a small sigh as she sat down beside Eri's bed, rubbing her silver-grey hair forlornly. "I don't know sweetie, but we will find her as soon as we can. So, don't worry so much okay? You're be able to see Jirou again."

"Mmm…okay." Eri said as she let out a soft yawn. "I want to hear Miss Jirou sing again…her voice was pretty…"

"She's so thoughtful. What an adorable girl." Ochako felt her heart dance as she muttered to herself, placing the pillows around Eri so that she could sleep more comfortably. "In the meantime, what about a bedtime story? I'm sure Deku-kun mentioned yesterday that he read a story to you…which story was it again Eri-chan? Was it snow white?" she asked gently, only getting an sleepy stare in return and causing a chuckle to escape her lips.

"I figured as much. I guess you were pretty tired when Deku told you his bedtime story." Ochako gazed at Eri's droopy eyes before taking the book of fairytales from its resting place and flipped through its pages. "Let's see…how about…Cinderella? Have you heard about this story Eri-chan?"

"Cinderella?" Eri asked curiously, looking up at Ochako sitting beside her while supporting the book. "Is it another princess?"

Ochako smiled as she began reading the second fairy tale as she snuggled close to Eri's side. "I guess we are about to find out then. Let's see…Once Upon a Time, in a faraway land, there was a beautiful cinder girl by the name of Cinderella, who lived with her evil stepmother and stepsisters…"

As story was read out about how Cinderella entered the ball with the help from her fairy godmother, Eri's eyes brightened up, totally enraptured by Ochako's reading and causing the [Zero-gravity] girl to giggle at the little girl's expressions.

"But the fairy godmother solemnly warned Cinderella," Ochako continued with a smile. "On the stroke of midnight, the spell will be broken, and everything will be as it was before."

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**=[]=**

_Salagadoola mechicka boola  
Bibbidi-bobbidi-boo  
It'll do magic, believe it or not  
Bibbidi-bobbidi-boo_

_Now, salagadoola meens  
And mechicka booleroo  
But the thingamabob that does the job  
Is bibbidi-bobbidi-boo!_

_~Bibbidi bobbidi boo from Cinderella (1950)_


	5. Chapter 5: The Second Victim

A/N: A few things before this chapter commerces,

Fencer29: Thanks for the input, it was helpful! About the sequence of the stories…I guess you have to find ou!

Black Cat Angel: Thanks for the review! Welcome to the story!

Said the Liar 13: Your answers will be in this chapter! Enjoy!

To those who favourite his story, thanks for the support! Without further ado…shall we turn the pages of our young heros' dilemma?

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**Chapter 5: The Second Victim**

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"Have you ever heard or seen a man who called himself 'Jafar'?"

Yaoyorozu did not know just how many times that question was repeated from her mouth. The villains rounded up and bound together by Shoto, Endeavor, and a few of his sidekicks (courtesy of the special alloy net made by her to trap strength-enhanced villains) shot her multiple dirty looks and glares, but she paid that no heed as she began her own interrogation.

"Screw off!"

"Fuck off girlie, try asking that to someone who actually gives a shit."

"Ya know what?" a villain smirked as he eyed her costume with a lecherous smirk. "I could tell ya what I might know, how about ya let me have a closer look at that smok'in hot body-!" He was cut mid-sentence when the air suddenly chilled and a layer of frost began to creep towards the villain's mouth, making him turn his terrified eyes at a certain dual-elementalist with heterochronic eyes.

"Try to crack another statement like that, and I'll make sure to freeze your mouths shut, _for good_." Shoto told the criminals coldly, effectively shutting the mouths of the rowdy group for the rest of the day.

Momo only sighed with resignation as she made her way to a pillar of the building where Endeavor and his group conducted the villain group raid, and slumped next to it. It was already close to midnight, and together with Shoto, the both of them had been following the Pro-hero for an entire day.

Taking a break from the constant and tiring villain roundup of Endeavor's daily patrol, Momo's thoughts kept returning to the same question: where in the world was Jirou? She could not imagine how much pain and suffering the poor girl was going through while the rest of them are finding close to nothing regarding her whereabouts. Just where was she? The villain called Jafar had some kind of portal quirk but it wasn't powerful enough to escape out of Japan was it? Was the villain part of a bigger group? Thankfully, Yaoyorozu's string of thoughts was broken by someone sitting next to her.

"Endeavor-san," Momo greeted a little nervously, but retained her overall composure. She had heard stories about how strict he used to be, but she had learnt from her early childhood training that it was rude to judge one based on appearances. But still, nothing could have prepared her for her first meeting with him face to face.

Endeavor then set his gaze towards Momo, inspecting her from head to toe with a frown on his face. "Mind if I talk to you for a moment?"

"E-Ehh? Okay." With that, he sat next to the girl and leaned his back against the wall. For a moment, there was an awkward silence.

"So, you're Yaoyorozu Momo, the other student besides Shoto who has gotten into UA through recommendations?"

"Y-Yes sir." The girl gulped nervously. She felt beads of sweat rolling down her forehead at how imposing Endeavor looked right in front of her. She had heard stories of how abusive he had been in Todoroki's childhood, so she figured he was going to say something criticizing and she prepared herself for a scathing retort. However, what he said was unexpected.

"Hmph. Your quirk is a little troublesome since you have to think before you can act, as shown by how you lost in the UA sports meet quarter-finals. But I see that you have improved that reaction time considerably since then, from the way you handled those villains just now. I say you should cut back on shooting those fancy commercials, and get more experience on the battlefield."

Momo was slightly taken aback by this. At first she was afraid that he was a hero who did not care much about others other than his son, but he gave a few rather blunt, but encouraging criticism to the [Creation] girl. To this, she bravely replied back. "W-Well I'll try, but the internship with Uwabami was not my choice, nor did I expect myself to be thrown into the advertising industry. But thanks for the input, I'll take it to heart."

"Was it that surprising?" Endeavor raised an eyebrow at the shock behind Yaoyorozu's tone. "But then again, the media had been putting in some rumors for the past few years so I guess it's understandable, given that some of them are regrettably true." The number one hero of Japan said gruffly, with an underlying hint of sadness mix in his voice. "If the classmates of Shoto can become great heroes, then my boy can have greater motivation to improve into greater heights. It's that simple."

Endeavor continued with a gruff tone, "Well, do your best to keep up in the next two hours. We are almost done with the patrol and the workload was considerably lessened thanks to you and your quirk. I can see why Shoto invited you to join us today."

"But in the end, I did not find what I was hoping for." The girl replied despondently.

"You mean that girl Jirou? Well, there's not much I can say in regards to that, but know that finding her is our highest priority as of now, so be assured that we are doing all we can to track the villain who kidnapped her."

Their conversation was quite short, as they saw Shoto strolled up to the both of them with a skeptical look on his usually expressionless face, apparently surprised to see his father talking to his friend.

"Well, I'll leave you two alone then, but assemble at the gathering point in 10 minutes, I'll be getting the rest of my sidekicks who are on break, so be ready by then." Endeavor instructed, before leaving the two students alone.

.

"What did he talk to you about?"

"He gave a few words of encouragement and tips for me," Yaoyorozu assured Shoto. "Your father's a lot nicer than how the media portrays him to be."

"Is that so?" With that, he sat next to Yaoyorozu.

"Eat up," muttered Shoto as he passed her a neatly-wrapped snack ration. "It's already close to midnight and we're going to end the day pretty soon. We'll need all the energy we can get."

As soon as Shoto saw the somber look reflected in Yaoyorozu's eyes as she accepted the snack gratefully, he felt a small pang in his chest. Shoto did not consider himself an expert when it comes to inter-class relationships, but he knew that Momo treated Jirou like her best friend. It was hard enough when Jirou was taken like that, but every second of her friend being missing is causing pain to surge through Momo. Not wanting to watch her suffer alone any longer, Shoto began to address his classmate.

"Yaoyorozu, you have been asking every single villain we captured the same thing; if they knew a villain who calls himself Jafar. Not that I want to question your methods, but there is no guarantee that they affiliated with him. He may be a villain who works solo."

"But even so," Yaoyorozu answered back. "We have to ask nevertheless. There may be a small chance that one of them might give us a clue."

"I know you are worried for Jirou," Shoto rebutted. "But it's best not to push yourself too hard; you have been asking around since the beginning of the day. And did you bring a jacket? Don't you at least feel a little chilly in this cold?"

"I can always make one. And besides, that's just how my costume is," she replied. "I'm not bothered by the cold in the least, though I may just a little bothered by all the comments those villains have been making since we started the search."

"Well, the fact remains that your hero costume exposes a little too much skin." Todoroki explained, trying to hide the slight flush taking over his face. "Even if you put on a cape, the front is still…"

"Well, as I explained it a thousand times in the past year, my quirk converts body fat into any inorganic material I want, except liquids and gases. The more skin exposure I have, the better I can create bigger and complicated objects without damaging my uniform permanently. Do you think the villain would wait for me to get changed?" Yaoyorozu asked with a deadpanned expression.

_"There's a lot of things I can say in regards to that,"_ Todoroki thought to himself, _"But I feel like I'll be digging my own grave if I do."_

"The downside to this is that it makes me more vulnerable to extreme environment conditions given my lack of body protection." she continued, taking a moment to cast a disdainful look at the capture criminals leering at her. "And attracting unwanted attention from the guys."

Yaoyorozu's words caused Todoroki to stop in his tracks, pausing to play her comment over in his head, and he struggled to respond to that statement. It was true that her costume was ideal in quickly dishing out whatever creation Momo had in mind, but he was aware that she was always asked to tone down the exposure of her costume for being 'scandalous'. It was not like she wanted others to ogle her, and she had demonstrated many times the functionality of her costume. He just didn't get why some people would criticize her of being shameless when they were the ones with inappropriate thoughts.

"Um…Todoroki-san, why are you so quiet?" Momo asked politely.

Shoto was snapped out of his gaze when he realized the girl was blushing slightly.

"What's with the brief silence? D-Don't tell me that you are thinking of something slightly dirty as well!? But I guess Todoroki-san is a boy after all…"

"Wha-wait! It's not what you think." Todoroki answered a little too hotly, horrified by the thought of being considered a pervert. "What I can say is, don't blame yourself for the unnecessary attention. There is nothing for you to be embarrassed about." He stated in an indifferent tone.

"O-Okay." Momo responded.

They continued not to speak for a while as they grabbed their snack rations and took a break with the rest of the Endeavor Agency. They felt the tension in the air dissolve as they each delved into their meals, taking in the peaceful lull of the night and relaxed. For a moment it was as though Jirou's kidnapping never happened.

"Where could Jirou-san possibly be?" she said tiredly, shooting Shoto a glance as though the boy she had thought so highly of would know the solution to their troubles. "We only search through the villain groups outside of Musutafu and none of them knew a villain called 'Jafar'."

"…I don't know either. Those villains we caught earlier? Who knows if they are being honest in the first place?" came Shoto's taut reply.

"I guess so," she leaned against the wall to rest as soon as she finished her last bite. "There are even speculations that she may have been taken outside of this country. I…don't want to believe it, but what do you think Todoroki-san?"

"…That may be a possibility. If the villain has a powerful warp quirk, he may as well be anywhere on the globe." Todoroki stated matter-of-factly. He wasn't one to mince words, but seeing the crestfallen look on his friend's face made him mentally berate himself for being so blunt.

_Of course…I accompanied her to search through the city for an entire day and I told her at the end that her efforts may be for naught…great going Todoroki._

Shoto had always known that Momo's tendency to help others was in her nature. Like him, she wanted to be a hero. She wanted to help others. She was the kind of girl who would actively stay back after class to help those who struggled with their grades such as Mina and Kaminari. Just how nervous and stressed out she was when one of her best friends was suffering under the hands of an unknown villain, Shoto did not know. Even now, under her calm expression, a mix of sorrow, fear and shock could be seen in her eyes, forcing her to continue her search. For a friend who was willing to listen to his tragic childhood and encourage him, what should he tell her…?

"But even so, I will continue to search. As long as there is a possibility that she is still in Japan, I will keep on finding. Today was a good start thanks to Endeavor-san's speed, and I have you to thank for today Todoroki-san." Momo clamped one hand over the other, resting them on her lap as she leaned forward to look at her classmate, who was surprised by Momo's sudden gratitude.

"You invited me to join your father because you knew that we can cover a huge search radius if we were to follow and help him. I expect no less from you, Todoroki-san."

"That's not really the rea…what's with that so suddenly? You don't have to-"

"Thinking back through the past year, I've never thanked you enough for all the things you've done for me." Yaoyorozu was on a roll, the feelings of gratitude and joy she had experienced thanks to the boy were threatening to overflow, and now was the chance to express that since they were all alone right now. "During the time I froze up during the practical exam with Aizawa-sensei, you were the one who encouraged me and trusted in my capabilities. I never got the chance to say this properly last year, but I wanted you to know that you helped change me."

Todoroki remained silent for a while as he figured out what to say in response to Yaoyorozu's praises.

"…you're overrating me Yaoyorozu. To me, you are already a wonderful hero." He said finally. "If anyone saw just how hard you are working right now, I'm sure they will all say the same thing."

It was such a statement befitting of Todoroki, short, concise and yet so pure, and Momo couldn't help but laugh. It was probably the first time Todoroki has seen such a beautiful smile grace her features since the news of Jirou's disappearance hit her hard. Todoroki turned to her in response with a bemused look, unsure if there was something funny about what he said earlier, at which caused Yaoyorozu to laugh even more.

"You know, Todoroki-san? If you were a little more expressive when you say such things, I'm sure you will be quite the ladies' man." Yaoyorozu laughed as she jokingly said.

"Was that meant to be a compliment?"

"Mmm…if you want to think of it as one, sure." Once she calmed down a little, the stress accumulated from the previous day vanished and she smiled back at Todoroki. "But I am serious about what I said earlier; thank you Todoroki-san."

"You've been thanking me a lot these days," muttered Shoto, still quite not used to Yaoyorozu's high standards and praises of him. "If you praise me this much, even I'm going to get uncomfortable."

"It's polite to accept someone's praise you know?" She insisted. "Besides, you have been giving me so much to be thankful for. I honestly have no idea how I would turn out if I've never met you since the start of the year."

"I beg to differ. I'm sure you'll still be the same regardless of whether I'm here or not." Shoto replied. "I'm grateful that you hold me in such high regard, but you think too highly of me Yaoyorozu; Midoriya, Iida, Bakugo…there are lots of guys out there far greater and better than me."

"You're saying those one-sided things again Todoroki-san!" scolded the girl. Honestly…how can such a powerful and battle-seasoned boy like Shoto have an unexpectedly low self-esteem? She rounded up on him so suddenly that Shoto could not help but twitched in surprise. "Why do you continuously degrade yourself like that? Todoroki-san is a great judge of character and situations!"

Shoto listened with wide, astonished eyes as she continued. "During the sports festival and final practicals against Aizawa-sensei, you displayed your knowledge where I have much to learn. It's true that there are always someone who is better, but we mush acknowledge our own strengths to continue improving. Please be proud of that fact Todoroki-san!"

"You told me during the final exams last year remember?" Yaoyorozu asked. "you said 'You excel at that kind of thing'; everyone has something you trusted me because you are confident in my decision-making."

"Y-Yeah…"

"I also think the same way about you, isn't that wonderful Todoroki-san?" Yaoyorozu smiled warmly. "Being the right person at the right place to compliment the other's faults is an important part of being a hero. Just as you encouraged me and guided me through my insecurities and fears, I too wish to help you…and understand you better."

"Do you get it Todoroki-san?"

Yaoyorozu inched closer to where Shoto was sitting, and grabbed his hand. Shoto was caught off-guard by this, and his hand jerked out of reflex, but when he did, she gripped his hand just a little tighter. This unexpected action caused Shoto to look at Yaoyorozu in surprise.

"Don't say things like that anymore alright? The Todoroki-san I know is a little dense, is horrible at reading social cues, but is someone I can trust my back to when we are on the field. Even if I cannot relate to what you have suffered through your childhood, I at least know for sure that you are one of the greatest heroes I have met in my life. I like the way you are now!"

"Eh…? Like?"

There was a silence, and Momo felt her cheeks flushed at the phrasing of her words, and she turned away. On the other hand, Todoroki raised a hand to run through his hair, pausing briefly at where his childhood scar was located, before letting it rest back on his lap.

"…Thanks Yaoyorozu." He responded finally. Unconsciously, he placed his hand over his chest as a strange warmth formed within, making Shoto wonder just how lucky he was to have such a friend.

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However, this sweet moment did not last long.

"Ah…isn't that just sweet? The bond between dear friends." A mocking voice cut through the silence. "How charming. How perfectly charming."

Suddenly footsteps resounding from the unilluminated part of the streets where Shoto and Yaoyorozu were taking their break drew both of their attention as they turned to where the voice was coming from. The right hand of Todoroki flared up with flames as he tensed up for a fight. "Show yourself!"

"Who's there?" Yaoyorozu said wearily as well.

From the shadows strolled a woman walking with such ease and grace despite her middle age. She looked to be fifty at least, her dark-grey hair styled as a heart-shaped pompadour, with a small light-grey streak in the middle. She had a notably large hooked nose with pronounced creases on both sides. Her narrow green eyes were highlighted with heavy purple eyeliner. She was dressed in a long maroon gown with a high laced collar and lacy cuffs on the sleeves, with a golden brooch on her neck along with a green gem. Her long, bony hands held an ebony wand. For a moment Yaoyorozu was shocked by how out of place and old-fashioned her attire was, but she could not help but be slightly entranced by the lady's unnatural beauty.

"Wait a minute…" Shoto's face was one of apprehension and caution. "there's something weird with her."

She looked like an ordinary old woman dressed in an outdated formal attire, but something about her screamed danger and tempted Shoto to take action immediately. Much to his relief, a few of Endeavor's sidekicks who came to get the two students were shocked to see this new individual. Nevertheless, the old woman was unfazed by the fact she was outnumber, and greeted the heroes.

"Good evening gentlemen, I am known as the Wicked Stepmother." The woman said in a simpering tone as she lifted the ends of her gown and gave a mocking bow. "And I have come to claim my new cinder girl."

"Identify yourself!" Both of Endeavor's sidekicks demanded as the newcomer ignored them. "Or we'll send you out the hard way!"

"Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo!"

With a wave of her wand, the old woman blasted out a blast of green energy towards the two sidekicks of Endeavor with some weird incantation. Yaoyorozu and Shoto watched in profound shock as the two men began to shrink, growing big ears and tails, until they transformed into two very confused-looking dormice. The look in the lady's eyes were the coldest and most condescending Yaoyorozu and the others have ever seen in their lives, as she gazed down at the two mice she just transformed the heroes into.

"Hold your tongue, wretched children." She hissed, "Do not presume that I have the luxury to deal with the likes of you _heroes_. My business is with the girl only."

The mice-turned sidekicks continued to squeak with fright as they tried to fathom what just happened. They were helplessly levelled into the air by another wave of the old woman's wand and their tiny bodies twisted in pain. Seeing this, Shoto immediately fired up his left arm and aimed at the mysterious woman, who was only a few metres away. However as he did so, the old woman was a step ahead of him and fired another bolt of green energy from her wand while chanting out those strange words, "Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo!"

Shoto felt a strange force overwhelming him, the green energy draining all of his body of its strength and fizzling out his flames at the exact same time. He tried to send out his ice, but nothing happened. A second blast of the woman's wand sent him skidding backwards and tumbled across the ground.

"What the hell?" whispered Shoto.

"Todoroki-san!" Momo cried out.

"It's best you worry about yourself first my dear." The lady smirked at the [Creation] quirk girl, before whipping out her wand towards the fallen Shoto, causing the girl to instinctively create a simple shield to block the green beam. However, upon making contact, the shield was instantly dispersed into dust with the addition of Yaoyorozu being knocked down to the floor. Seeing this, Momo made swords, bo staffs and chains, all of which were disintegrated back to nothing by the old woman's strange powers.

"Your 'quirk' does not affect me one bit my dear," The old woman gave an ugly sneer. "It's high time for you to be put in your place."

"W-Who are you exactly!?" Yaoyorozu spluttered. "Why are you doing this!?"

"Oh my dear," The old woman chuckled darkly. "Who am I or why I'm here for you isn't important. But I can assure you that you have no idea the full extent of my powers. So stay quiet like a good little girl and allow the story to move on to its next chapter."

The lady snapped her fingers, and with a blast of green smoke a huge object materialized behind her. When the smoke cleared, Yaoyorozu could then see clearly it was a black pumpkin. It was large, and spiralling vines and leaves were coiled and turning, giving it the shape of wheels. Four black horses were hitched onto the pumpkin by a black thorny harness, greenish ghost-fire smouldered the dark steads where their manes and eyes were supposed to be. They neighed and snorted small bursts of green flames, pawing the ground as though they were itching to trample someone underneath their mighty hooves. Lastly, two men; one coachman and one footman, with similar glowing green eyes could be seen manning the vehicle, flashing Momo creepy grins. It was basically a twisted version of a carriage belonging to the fairy tale everyone has heard of in their childhoods.

After that, the Wicked Stepmother raised her wand as it glowed bright green, and then Yaoyorozu found herself being levitated into the air and hovered towards the open doors of the black pumpkin carriage. Yaoyorozu tried to create something that may help her using her [Creation] quirk, but to her horror nothing came out.

"What's going on!?" Yaoyorozu cried, her voice shrill with fright as she tried to concentrate. "My quirk! I can't use my quirk-! Nothing's coming ou-!"

_"Her quirk's being nullified…? No-it's not activating!? Does she have a quirk similar to Aizawa-sensei!?" _Shoto thought.

Momo shifted desperately and worked on stopping the tears that were on the brink of coming out from her eyes unbidden. The dangerous glint in the old woman's eyes was making her cry, but Yaoyorozu knew that crying will not help in this situation, and she knew that instinctively. She certainly have never been schooled on how to behave during a kidnapping but she was certain her best chance was to shout loudly and attract attention. With that, she started screaming.

"Ah…frightened are we?" The Wicked Stepmother mused. "Not to worry, you will be reunited with our first victim soon enough."

"YOU OLD HAG!" With a yell of rage, a wave of ice erupted from Todoroki's right foot as he unleashed all of his power feeling the numbness of the cold assaulting his body. Glaring towards the Wicked Stepmother, with an uncharacteristic primal roar, he followed up with a enormous torrent of flames blasting towards the woman with the intention of making her experience the wrath of two extreme temperatures.

However, the old woman swept her wand in a circling motion, muttered some sort of incantation and Shoto's massive attack was reduced to magical dust, before Shoto found himself flying backwards once again, landing painfully on the cold pavement.

It was at that moment when Endeavor and the rest of his sidekicks burst through to the scene and was flabbergasted by this weird sight. "Who are you!?" Endeavor roared and punched out a blast of flames at the old woman, but just like with Shoto, his attack was turned into harmless magical dust.

"Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo!" The lady cackled with glee, and her eyes gleamed with a sadistic light which made even the number 1 hero shudder.

"No! The girl!" One of the sidekick's screams made Shoto and the rest turn to see the elderly woman flicked her wand, forcefully dragging Yaoyorozu into the open doors of the blue pumpkin carriage in a blink of an eye. The terrified Momo gave a scream as an unseen force yanked her into the empty carriage, rooting her body to the seat as the door closed shut behind her.

"I shall be taking my new cinder girl, Todoroki Shoto." The woman informed Shoto and the rest, casting an amused glance at Yaoyorozu who was banging her fists on the carriage's window. "Let's see if you have what it takes to find her, _Prince Charming_. For I, the Wicked Stepmother shall await you."

"No!" The heroes shouted and dashed towards the Wicked Stepmother as one, but they have barely taken a step forward when the woman drew a wide circle above her head with a wand, conjuring an orb of green light in the air, which then hammered down a pillar of green energy and sending everyone flying in different directions. Endeavor and the rest cried out in pain as they were forced to the ground.

The old woman barely batted an eyelid at this scene, casting one last haughty smirk at Shoto, Endeavor and his team before turning around with a swirl of her long gown and hoisted herself up onto the carriage seat beside the driver and behind the black horses. She ignored the persistent pounding and muffled screams of Yaoyorozu trapped inside the pumpkin carriage and turned to the coachman holding the reins. "Now, shall we depart?"

"STOP THAT CARRIAGE!" screamed Endeavor.

The coachman gave an evil smirk as he snapped the reins with a snicker, making the steads jolt forward and gallop towards the main road. The four ghostly horses of the carriage neighed angrily as they reared and galloped onto the busy streets of Musutafu, pushing past cars and tore the pavements as they pulled the ghostly pumpkin carriage. The nearby citizens and drivers shouted in alarm as they attempted to get out of the mysterious transport's path, resulting in a big panic and cars piling up and blocking the road. But the ghostly carriage's four steads were unstoppable in their charge, their thunderous impact crashing through like a siege ram.

"Fucking hag!" Shoto cursed as he clutched his side and forced his body to move.

"Wait! Shoto-!" Ignoring his father's calls, Shoto pushed himself off the ground and took after the carriage, stacking the ice beneath his feet to propel himself forward on an ice slide. Seeing this, Endeavor and the rest quickly followed suit as well, desperately trying to get through the mess of broken cars and panicked citizens caused by the Evil Stepmother's carriage and her horses' thrashing hooves.

As Endeavor sped past the rest and try to catch up to his son, he had a rather perplexed expression. What the heck were those villains thinking? There was no way they can escape the city on that monster of a transport. It was only a matter of time until the other pro-heroes arrive and surround the woman who kidnapped Yaoyorozu. The least he can do now is not to let that carriage out of his sight…!

As Endeavor convinced himself, a loud chime like a grandfather's clock rang though the air out of nowhere, signalling the arrival of midnight.

"Right on schedule." As the pumpkin carriage was about to reach a dead end after turning at a junction, the Wicked Stepmother raised her wand and shot out a bolt of rainbow-coloured energy in front of her vehicle. Moments later, a glowing whirlpool of light was formed in the middle of the road, sucking in the surround air like a vacuum. Shoto was just right behind the carriage, he mustered all his strength to create a wide cone of ice, adamant on freezing the pumpkin carriage in its tracks before it can go to who knows where. However, the driver snapped the reins and force the horses and spurt forward before Shoto's attack reached them.

The coachman and footman of the carriage tipped their hats at Shoto mockingly before the vehicle was driven into the light portal, making the hybrid quirk boy catch one final glimpse of Yaoyorozu's frightened face through the vehicle's window before she disappeared into the whirlpool of light as well.

"YAOYOROZU!" Shoto roared. _NO! I'm NOT going to let her be taken like this!_ his mind screamed out, his usually calm demeanour nowhere to be found as he tried to grab on to the carriage's tailgate, not caring where he ended up as long as he can follow his friend. But before he could come close, a blast of green magical energy hit the boy straight through the chest, an indescribable cold feeling penetrated his heart and caused his body to fall over, and like a distant echo he could have sworn Yaoyorozu was screaming his name...

"I'll be meeting you soon enough…_Prince Charming_."

Those words were the last things Todoroki could hear before the portal completely dispersed into particles of light. He felt his body falling over before his vision was beginning to blacken, dark spots covered his vision and his body crumbled to the ground.

.

.

_"…oto! Shoto! Can you hear me?! What did that woman do to him?!"_

_"Where's the carriage?! This is a dead end isn't it?"_

_"Don't just stand there! Call the rest over here and tell them what happened! Shoto! Shoto wake up! Snap out of it and get a grip! Sho…to…SHOTO…!"_

_._

_._

Todoroki could feel someone shaking his body, and many blurry shadows were gathering around him, but he could not register what they were trying to say as his consciousness was threatening to shut down. But he had to say it. They had to know what happened…his biggest blunder…she was taken…

"Yaoyorozu," Shoto croaked out. "Yaoyorozu…!"

That was all he managed before the darkness took over.

**=[]=**

**.**

_Lavender's blue,__  
Dilly dilly,  
Lavenders green._

_When I am King,  
Dilly dilly,  
You shall be Queen._

_I love to dance,  
Dilly dilly,  
I love to sing._

_When I am Queen,  
Dilly dilly,  
You'll be my King._

_Who told me so,  
Dilly dilly,  
Who told me so?_

_I told myself,  
Dilly dilly,  
I told me so._

_~Lavender's Blue from Cinderella (2015)_


	6. Chapter 6: Foreshadowing of a Great Evil

A/N: A few things before this chapter commerces,

Fencer29: The two mice-turned sidekicks have been safely retrieved by the Endeavor Agency, and have been placed in a safe containment in the agency until a method to turn them back could be devised. As of now, they spend all day squeaking and eating cheese as (temporary) pets.

Black Cat Angel: Thank you for the review! I'm sad to say that not everyone will get their story.

Said the Liar 13: Your review is appreciated! Thanks for the support!

To those who read this story, thanks for the views! Without further ado…let's begin!

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**Chapter 6: Foreshadowing of a Great Evil.**

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"I wonder how Todoroki and Yaomomo are doing…"

Mina asked loudly while her body is slumped over the kitchen counter in the shared dorms, with Kirishima gave her a questioning look as he sat across her. The dorm lobby was full of activity, as the class 2-A students went about with their breakfast.

"It's weird for you to be that concerned for them; didn't you say that our two recommended pair of the class would not have any problems?" Kirishima raised an eyebrow at his horn buddy. "Hopefully they can come back with some clues regarding Jirou. But shouldn't they be back by last night?"

"Yes, _supposedly_." Mina emphasized. "But Yaomomo told me yesterday that their patrol would probably take way longer than that…so she mentioned that she'll be back with Todoroki by this morning. And for the record, I was concerned about a different aspect for those two."

"Uh huh…'bout wha?" asked Kirishima as he stuffed another spoonful of omelettes into his mouth, along with the rest of their classmates having their breakfast at the lobby area of the dorms.

"Oh you know…" Mina grinned widely. "About the two of them being together and all. Despite the current situation, it's still such a rare opportunity to be alone with your crush."

"Well, given that the two of them were alone all day, can we expect Yaomomo to make some progress?" Tooru whispered excitedly into Mina's ear, "I can't see Todoroki being assertive in this kind of situation, so do you think our girl has finally made some headway with him?"

"In any case, it's our job to make sure that happens." The cheeky expression on the [Acid] quirk girl's face was promising mischief and possible havoc. "As the class' cupid of romantic affairs, I must see the results of our couples' love to the end, or I can't graduate!"

"You sure you got your priorities in order?" Kirishima deadpanned. "You're being unnecessarily forceful in this, aren't you?"

"Oh Kirishima," Mina shook her head as she gave a wry smile, speaking in a sagely manner. "You young'ins have much to learn in the pursuit of love."

"I'm older than you, remember?" The redhead retorted back.

.

All of a sudden, the doors to the dorms slammed open and revealed a heavily panting Sero, who just looked like he ran a marathon.

"Woah! Sero!?" Sato shouted in warning as the [Tape] quirk boy burst through the door and almost collided with the [Sugar Rush] quirk user. "Don't run! It's dangerous!"

"T-Todoroki! *pant…pant* and Yaoyorozu! *pant…pant*" Sero cried out desperately as he ran towards where his classmates were eating relaxing, making even Bakugo turn his head towards the boy to see what could have gotten him so flustered.

"Did something happen?" Ashido poked her head out and asked.

"They…! *pant*"

"They what? Did they managed to find Jirou?!" Kaminari sprang out from his chair and confronted Sero hurriedly. "Where did they find her?!"

"Kaminari calm down! Sero, what happened!?"

Sero panted and gasped for air, his lungs threatening to burst from all the running he did. "T-Todoroki *pant* in *gasp* in the hospital right now! Yaoyorozu has gone missing!" Sero managed to say between breaths.

"WHAT!?"

.

**=[]=**

**Musutafu General Hospital**

.The group of hero students (along with Aizawa) watched on worriedly as the nurses tended to their beloved dual-elemental powerhouse. He looked even worse than they expected; his usually uniform hair was rumpled and tangled, his hero costume looked as though he was dragged across the road gravel, and his face kept displaying expressions of mild pain and agony even though he was unconscious, like he was in a nightmare. Due to the fact that his heartrate was above the norm, the doctors have tirelessly tried to diagnose the problem. His father, Endeavor was standing next to them with a deep frown on his face.

"I…I just don't understand…" The surgeon told Endeavor with a stumped expression. "Apart from small wounds and abrasions, his body should not have any other abnormalities. The only possible explanation would be a side-effect from the villain's attack."

"He went ahead of me so I could not say what has exactly happened to him for certain," Endeavor stated disgruntledly. "By the time I caught up, he was already unconscious. I have no idea how the villain turned him to such a state."

"Did he ever wake up or show any sign of movement?" Aizawa asked Endeavor as the rest of Shoto's friends approached his bed. "Did he say anything?"

"…he did say something." Endeavor replied, watching the students of class 2-A's looks of concern for his son. "He has been saying the same thing for a short while before I brought him to the hospital, and completely lost consciousness since then. He hasn't woken up since."

"What did he say?" Aizawa pressed, at which Endeavor made a rather complicated expression on his face. He was silent for a moment before one word slipped out of his lips.

"Yaoyorozu." He finally answered. "He said the name of the girl who accompanied me yesterday for my daily patrol route."

The entire class exchanged shocked and worried looks.

"She's gone? Did something happen between Yaoyorozu and Todoroki?" Mineta questioned.

"If things were so simple, we wouldn't have to be here in the first place." Endeavor retorted with a heated expression, but his face blanched slightly as he recalled the bizzare events of last night. "I honestly have no idea how I should explain what happened last night, but she was kidnapped by a strange old lday and driven away. Shoto was chasing after her but I found him lying on the ground in the state you see him now."

"And Yaoyorozu Momo," Endeavor's face grimaced considerably at his own failure. "The girl, that old woman…they just vanished."

...

...

"WHAT THE FUCK?!" Bakugo was the first to shout.

"What did you say?!"

"I-It can't be," Tooru said fretfully, glancing towards Ashido and Tsuyu. "You guys don't think that, just like Jirou-chan…"

"Yaomomo too?" Mina whispered, the horrifying revelation dawning in her tone. The boys looked from their invisible classmate to the [Acid] quirk girl with mild confused looks, until they too realized what they were getting at.

"WHOA! You don't mean that – the same villain who kidnapped Jirou managed to capture Yaoyorozu too!?"

"Two consecutive kidnappings in a row around the same time," Aizawa stated in a low voice. "Even if you guys have the worst luck, there is no way this could be a coincidence."

"The villain responsible for the kidnapping of Jirou Kyouka?" Endeavor repeated, looking towards Aizawa as he recalled the report he had read regarding the strange abduction of the [Earphone Jack] quirk girl. "Was it confirmed that the villain we encounted last night was the same culprit from the first case? But I thought that was a man in eastern attire, mine was an old lady with a wand. She managed to get away in this huge carriage pulled by some kind of fire-breathing horses."

"They are indeed different, but the first culprit who disappeared along with Jirou possessed a quirk which allows him to conjure some kind of portal." Aizawa replied grimly, "If he is in cahoots with the old woman who took Yaoyorozu away, then it explains why she was able to escape so quickly from the crime scene."

"Two of our class' recommended students, along with Endeavor and a group of sidekicks, and she was taken away so easily?!" Sato gasped.

"We cannot confirm if the culprit this time was the same person," Asui provided a sound reasoning, but the frightened expression on her face betrayed her deceptively calm tone. "Regardless, a second kidnapping occurred right after one day at the same timing; this is too uncanny to be called a coincidence-ribbit."

"Seriously, just what in the world is going on?!" Kirishima swept his hand through his hair furiously as he gazed at the sleeping form of Todoroki. Having paced the room nervously for the last half-hour, the boys had taken chairs and sat down, while Bakugo had just been observing quietly from the side. The spiky-haired ash-blonde glared at Todoroki's face as though doing so may force the boy to wake up and quickly provide them with all the answers they need. Tooru, Ashido and Tsuyu looked at each other with worried expressions, each just as concerned for their hospitalized friend as much as their missing one.

Several of them were considering staying the night to keep their classmate company, when the doors of the hospital ward opened and revealed All Might in his deflated form, as well as Principal Nezu. "I received the summary of the situation from Aizawa, how is Todoroki Shoto?" Nezu asked briskly as he strolled to the foot of Todoroki's bed alongside Toshinori. "How is his current condition?"

"The doctor said that he did not sustain any life-threatening injuries," Endeavor repeated for the two UA staff members to hear. "He's got bruises and slight abrasions, but something is causing him to groan in his sleep like that."

"And so," Kirishima picked up where the pro-hero left off. "we were kind of thinking about staying here for the night, or at least until Todoroki wakes up."

"That's really sincere of you," Nezu praised the [Hardening] quirk boy gently, smiling at all of the students before the tone of his voice turned a tad serious. "However, one of the teachers will be enough to accompany young Todoroki here, and we need to have the rest of you returned to the UA Heights Alliance promptly. This situation has escalated more then we can possibly imagine in more ways than one; the media and paparazzi will no doubt try to hound all of you outside the hospital. I suggest that you leave the issue of Todoroki's interrogation to the police and UA faculty."

Toshinori could have sworn he saw an expression of annoyance and extreme anger flash across Endeavor's face for a moment, before the [Hell-flame] quirk hero calmed himself down and talked. "Typical of them; the story of two kidnappings of UA students after the incident from the training camp, that will be their favourite headliner for tomorrow's paper. When we are busy enough with figuring out one culprit, all they can do is criticize and question our willingness to take responsibility."

"Don't say that Enji," Toshinori rebutted. "There's no way we can keep this incident under wraps from the public. What we should focus on now is who or what exactly are we dealing with now."

"Erazerhead has told me the possibility of a connections between the Yaoyorozu's kidnapping and the incident with Jirou Kyoka the other night." continued Endeavor with a gruff tone. "Any updates on that?"

Several pairs of eyes flickered to Kaminari Denki, who had purposely shrunk to the hospital room's corner and avoided everyone's gaze. In response to the flame-hero's question, Nezu only gave a formal nod. "We are currently looking into that. But I'm afraid to say that while Todoroki remains unconscious, we will be unable to draw any conclusive hypothesis regarding the two kidnappings which had already happened."

"But how long will that take?" Kaminari asked for the first time after being silent for the entire duration of the hospital visit.

"We don't know, but let's hope it soon enough." Toshinori answered, gazing sadly at Todoroki's sleeping form.

Ashido, whose was determined not to show others her distraught upon hearing that any friend was kidnapped, nervously stepped forward and weighted her opinion. "T-That's right, in any case we should at least wait for Todoroki to recover. In the meantime, we should head back and prepare some food and stuff for his recovery."

"Don't bother Raccoon-eyes," Bakugo jerked his thumb to the hospital bed. "Looks like Icy-hot is finally back to the world of the living."

True enough, a low moan was heard following a painful cough, making everyone turn their heads towards the bed's occupant. Todoroki slowly awoke, to a dry throat and even drier eyes. He squinted and groaned, blinking the dirt out of his eyes. "Todoroki?" Ashido, who was closest to the [Half-cold, Half-hot] said hopefully. "Todoroki, are you waking up?"

"Todoroki!" Tooru gasped from beside his bed. "Oh my god thank goodness!"

"Wha…what happened-?!"

"Dude, we are the ones who should be asking you that!" Kirishima exclaimed with shock evident on his face. "We were going to contact you when you and Yaoyorozu didn't come back to the dorms this morning. The next thing we were told, Endeavor brought you to this hospital while you were unconscious!"

"H-Hospital?" Todoroki stared at him incredulously. He passed out just like that!? Todoroki furrowed his brows, trying to remember the events which led up to this point. He and Yaoyorozu were out searching for Jirou for an entire day. A weird woman in a long dress appeared and took his friend away. Yaoyorozu was then forced into a pumpkin carriage. And then…

Todoroki looked around, noticing a number of his 2-A classmates. Ashido was the one closest to him, while Sato, Ojirou, Sero, Tsuyu and Tokoyami were watching him worriedly at his left side. Bakugo, Mineta, Aizawa and Toshinori were by his right. Kirishima, Kaminari, Tooru and Principal Nezu were at the foot of the infirmary bed.

His eyes were empty, as if the spirit behind them were gone and he could only stare into blank space for a good few seconds in horrified silence.

"Todoroki," gentle yet powerful hands shook his shoulders tearing the [Half-cold, Half-hot] quirk teen back to reality and meeting the gaze of his red spiky-haired classmate.

"Young Todoroki," All Might moved to sit by Todoroki's side, and patted his back just like Kirishima. "What ever happened last night, you are in safe hands now. What happened to you and young Yaoyorozu? I know it's hard when you just woke up, but would you mind recalling the events which happened yesterday?"

"Was Yaomomo hurt!?" Ashido questioned vigorously.

"What did the kidnapper look like?" asked Sero Hanta.

Todoroki's eyes darted from person to person, question after question, but his mind struggled to find the words to tell them just how strange and traumatic the events of last night were. He needed to tell them everything, but something deep inside forced him to avert everyone's gaze in shame.

"T-Todoroki…?" Never had anyone seen Shoto in such a broken state before. Just what in the world happened?

"Y-Yaoyorozu…is gone…I'm so sorry…!"

Those words confirmed everyone's suspicions and made the girls lean back with small gasps. Seeing this reaction only made Todoroki bow his head in absolute shame, and he clenched his fist in frustration. The hybrid-quirk boy turned his gaze to Kaminari who was standing by the door, who immediately understood.

"So Ponytail was taken too," Bakugo declared with a growl. "Come on Icy-hot, was it that bastard Jafar and that talking chicken of his!? Was he there?! That Royal Vizier of Agabow or whatever?!"

"Agrabath." Corrected Kirishima.

"Like we need to remember a damn villain with a freaking long-ass bombastic title! SPILL IT ICY-HOT! WAS THAT JAFAR GUY THERE!?"

"No…it was someone different…just one person…Yaoyorozu was…pulled into a pumpkin carriage…by…by-!"

"Stop stuttering and tell us something which makes some damn sense!" Bakugo snapped, yanking the [half-cold, half-hot] quirk boy by the collar and shaking him to see if he was still dreaming from his previously unconscious state. "What the hell happened to you?! You look and talk like that damn nerd deku when he's around girls. Did Ponytail get taken away along with your balls or something?!"

In the next second, everyone edge away when Bakugo found himself restrained by a familiar special-alloy cloth from his homeroom teacher, before he could throttle Todoroki even further. Bakugo snapped his head towards Aizawa, who was glaring back with blood-red eyes. "I can't believe you're making do this at a hospital Bakugo. We are the ones who will be doing the questioning, _do I make myself clear?_"

Aizawa and Bakugo glared at each other for several seconds before the latter relented with a huff, directing his glare at Todoroki. "Are you going to tell us what happened or not?" he asked in an annoyed, but less forceful tone.

Todoroki was now sitting with his back slumped forward, his head bowed and bangs covering his eyes. Toshinori rested a comforting hand on the boy's arm upon seeing this.

"Young Todoroki," the former number 1 hero stated quietly. "You did nothing to be ashamed of. I know it must be hard for you to come to terms with your defeat last night, but we have to know the whole story about how young Yaoyorozu was taken. Maybe there is something you saw that may help in the police's investigation."

Todoroki swallowed a nervous gulp, keeping his eyes downcast, before speaking again. "Yaoyorozu and I were taking a break after patrol, when this old woman dressed in a weird gown and hairstyle suddenly showed up. She then turned two of my fa-Endeavor's sidekicks into mice, I tried to fight but she had some weird ability to cancel out my quirk using the wand she was holding. She did the same to Yaoyorozu and dragged her into…into a…" Todoroki took a deep breath before continuing. "She was thrown into a pumpkin carriage."

"What?!"

"A pumpkin carriage?!"

"It was a black and green carriage resembling a pumpkin, it just appeared out of thin air when that old woman snapped her fingers" Todoroki elaborated, his voice started to shake as he continued. "It was pulled by four black horses along with two other men, and they all had glowing green eyes; it basically looked like something out of this world. Those weren't normal horses…when they took Yaoyorozu inside, they were able to outrun me and bashed through the traffic like nothing. I tried to stop them, but…that woman used that wand of hers to blast me away."

"This woman," Principal Nezu decided to step in and asked in a hushed tone. "Todoroki, do you know who she is?"

Todoroki raised his head and looked at his teachers, his eyes burning with hate. "She introduced herself as the Wicked Stepmother," he said with a low growl. "and she called Yaoyorozu her new 'cinder girl'. She was the one who created this mess; turning people into mice, making that carriage appear out of nowhere and turning all of our attacks into dust, all using that weird wand of hers. I don't know what kind of quirk she possessed, but it seems that she can perform a variety of them." Todoroki absentmindedly rubbed the part of his chest where the kidnapper's attack had hit him and knocked him unconscious in one blow, "And then…she used that wand of hers to create a portal of white light…which they drove the carriage with Yaoyorozu in it into…and they were gone."

"The villains today sure have some weird naming sense…" Endeavor commented with a scowl. "Royal Vizier of Agrabah…Wicked Stepmother…are they weirdos who can't grow out of their bedtime stories or something?"

"A dangerous group of weirdos." Aizawa replied with a dark expression. "Who possess an annoyingly convenient means of escape."

"Did this 'Wicked Stepmother' ever say anything else to you, Todoroki?" Principal Nezu asked, and the boy nodded.

"She did say some weird incantation whenever she dishes out some of her abilities with that wand of hers, but I can't remember what those words are, it honestly sounded like gibberish…but right after she forced Yaoyorozu into the carriage she told me, "I will be taking my new cinder girl, Todoroki Shoto. Let's see if you have what it takes to find her. For I, the Wicked Stepmother shall await you." She knew my name, even though I've never met her before."

He looked at each of his stunned classmates in turn, silently observing their reactions to this news. Some looked away in quiet understanding, others with their mouths agape with horror. Not even Mina, who was notoriously the most outgoing in the class, could think of anything to comfort him. They did not dare say anything for a while, no one knew what to say or do.

"That sounds exactly like what happened when Jirou was taken the night before in the UA campus." Sero finally said. "But in our case, the villain Jafar told us to send a message to Kaminari instead!"

"And if what you said was true, both of the villains used the exact same portal quirk to escape!" Kirishima deduced. "That bastard Jafar must have been near Todoroki last night, in order to help out the woman who kidnapped Yaoyorozu!"

"Could both the Wicked Stepmother and Jafar part of the same villain group?" Koda asked fearfully.

"It's definitely possible." Tokoyami murmured.

"But why?" Tsuyu croaked out. "Why are they doing this-ribbit?"

"Damn," Everyone's eyes swung towards Mineta, the [Pop-off] quirk user staring at Todoroki and Kaminari in particular, but no one felt like disagreeing with what he said next. "Someone must really hate you guys."

That statement earned an dangerous glares from the two boys, causing Mineta to break into a nervous sweat. "W-What?! Just saying!"

Sato grimaced. "Mineta is right; we cannot ignore the possibility of this being a personal attack."

Tokoyami nodded. "That's right, the fact that both of the assailants knew their intended target's names beforehand proves that hypothesis. Exposing themselves to the public like that, kidnapping in such a brazen manner, it appears that our foes this time are just that confident. And dressing as children's tales to do so…how tasteless."

Dark Shadow choose this moment to pop out and added on to his buddy's disgusted statement regarding the villains responsible. "Perhaps it's their way of sick entertainment; kidnapping our fellow friends against their will while masquerading as fairy tale villains."

"Those bastards are really targeting us huh?!" Kirishima's face darkened considerably and clutched his fists in raw anger. "That's dirty! If they got a problem with us, they should just come out and face us head-on! Not through this!"

"I'm so sorry…!" Todoroki gritted his teeth in frustration. "If only I was a little faster…!"

"Stop blaming yourself; nothing good will come out of you beating yourself up like this." Aizawa said as he gazed at the boy. "You did your best."

Aizawa turned to Principal Nezu and Toshinori, each of them exchanging dark looks. "This changes things; we have to get every single student of class 2-A and put them under strict supervision and protection." The statement made by All Might caused the very students to have fearful looks.

"Wa-but why?!"

"Countermeasures. It may have been a coincidence that the two victims so far are from my class." Aizawa replied darkly. "But there are things I hate more than a mere coincidence."

Endeavor got to his feet and looked at the group. "If the enemy is out there targeting the kids from your class Eraserhead, then you should stick together with them within the school compound." he said in a stern voice, leaving no room for negotiation, "I'll get my agency to crack down on this 'Wicked Stepmother', in the meantime it's best if the 2-A class stays within UA for the time being."

.

Several minutes passed by in silence. No one had anything else to say, and the past half hour had gotten all of the heroes and students drained of their energy.

"We should head back to the school first. Let's give Todoroki some space." Ojiro suggested in a quiet voice. Every other student nodded in agreement.

"Everyone…" Todoroki began. "Thanks for coming. I…I appreciate your concerns." His face was once again bowed down and his eyes covered by his long bangs, staring listlessly at his own hands.

"Get better soon alright Todoroki?" Mina told the boy kindly. "Don't beat yourself up too hard." She heard the footsteps making their way out of the room, and she followed suit, leaving Shoto alone in his room.

Todoroki's thoughts went back to how Yaoyorozu attempted to reach out for him while he was helplessly useless against the Wicked Stepmother and her strange powers…the hysterical, gut wrenching panic he felt at the thought of not being to save her made Todoroki's face paled and clutched his heart.

_"Pathetic…! This is so…pathetic…!" _Todoroki clenched his teeth and cursed out in his mind.

**=[]=**


End file.
